Early Start
by The Immortal Siegfried
Summary: Lelouch meant what he said when he promised he would destroy Britannia. He starts preparing for his revolution early, training to be stronger with Sayoko. Not only that but Nunnally and Rai are in on it as well.
1. The Black Knight

Early Start: The Black Knight

"_Thoughts_"

"Speech"

Action

**Time**

CUSTOMARY DISCLAIMER: I do not, nor have in any way, ever owned anything to do with the original anime or story which my fan fictions are based off of. These stories are written for the sole purpose of entertainment, and not meant to achieve any profit through selling it. Honestly.

I assure you that I do not promote violence against Flamers (I do, however, find it hilarious).

* * *

_A.T.B. 2017_

**Shinjuku ghetto**

_Zero_

"Well now, what a shame," The leader of the soldiers muttered, smirking up at him as he pointed his gun at him. "You look like a Britannian but I am under orders to kill anyone who comes across this little project, so any last words." The leader asked in a mocking tone as guns were suddenly pointed at him.

Lelouch slowly stood and turned towards the soldiers of Clovis' Royal Guard that was led by the arrogant Lieutenant.

"Say," Lelouch began as he looked them in the eyes, both hands at his side. "How should a Britannian that detests his own country live his life?" he asked them.

The Lieutenant then raised his pistol and steadied it at Lelouch. He then asked the Britannian youth, "Are you some kind of radical?" The Lieutenant then appeared to be confused at Lelouch's apparent confidence, in spite of the dire situation that he looked to be in.

"What's wrong?" Lelouch asked them. "Why not shoot? Your opponent is merely a schoolboy." Lelouch stated. "Or have you finally realized, that the only ones who should kill are those who are prepared to be killed!?" Lelouch activated the Geass in his left eye.

The Lieutenant shook as his confidence melted away at the sight of the majestic young man, only to be replaced by a bone-chilling fear. "What's happening here?" the Lieutenant demanded as he attempted to hide his inner panic and turmoil.

Lelouch dramatically raised and extended his left arm to his side, and then gave them the order. "I," Lelouch paused briefly, "Lelouch Vi Britannia command you. Now, all of you. Die!" He spoke as he used the Geass residing in his left eye to overwrite the will of the soldiers who had cornered him.

"Happily your highness!" the Lieutenant exclaimed. The poor fool then chuckled maniacally as he and the rest of the Royal Guard soldiers under his direct command pressed their Britannian-issue side arms to the base of their skulls. "Fire!" the Lieutenant ordered as he began to pull his own trigger.

Gunshots, muffled by the flesh of their targets, rang out in the abandoned warehouse in the Shinjuku ghetto. Multiple corpses, recently made, fell to the ground, with each body making a "Thump!" as they hit the concrete floor.

Lelouch felt a small trickle of blood land on his cheek as he observed the scene act out.

_"Excellent, this speeds up my plans tremendously." _Lelouch thought_ "Now to contact..."_

His thoughts were rudely interrupted as the sound of Knightmare land spinners screeched into his ears.

"You there. What happened here?" Viletta's voice came from the Sutherland's speakers.

"I order you to come out!" Lelouch demanded.

"Who the hell are you to order me?" Viletta bit right back at him, anger barely concealed at his actions.

Lelouch put his hands up in order to signal that he meant no harm. Not to the Knightmare, at least. "My name is Alan Spacer," Lelouch said to the woman, "my father's a Duke." Lelouch smiled inwardly as he continued his charade of nobility. Too easy. He then informed her of how he wanted to have the military's protection after she'd confirmed who his was. Here she comes, Lelouch thought as Viletta opened her cockpit block and descended on the wire.

Lelouch then activated his personal power and ordered the dark-skinned woman to give him her Knightmare.

Viletta quickly followed his orders and gave him the Sutherland's key and access code.

Lelouch grinned as he gathered C.C.'s body and placed her behind him in the Sutherland's cockpit. "Might as well give her a proper burial later." Lelouch stated in a somber tone.

"It's so simple." he stated as he familiarized himself with the Sutherland's controls. "Now, it's time to win this." Lelouch spoke as he piloted the stolen Sutherland to its next destination, a grin that the devil would be proud of plastered on his face.

* * *

_Lotus_

Kallen Kozuki was piloting her one-armed Glasgow as best she could in order to survive.

"Damn it!" she screamed. "The difference is just too great." She grimaced in her Glasgow's cockpit._ "I can handle just one easily_," she thought as her pursuers continued on her trail. "_But I can't handle two Sutherlands while I'm in this shape."_

She continued to run from the trailing Britannian Sutherlands, relying more on instinct in order to survive than skill.

The screen inside her cockpit which indicated energy-filler status began to loudly beep as it displayed a large "Caution" sign, indicating that she was about to run out of energy. "Just thirty minutes left." Kallen was dismayed when she realized that she was nearly done for.

"The west entrance." Her radio buzzed to life with an unfamiliar voice. "Take the tracks to the west entrance."

That definitely wasn't Ohgi or Tamaki, she thought as she continued to run away from her new shadows. "Who are you?" Kallen demanded as she yelled into her radio. "How did you get this code?" she fired off at the new voice.

"That doesn't matter," the voice answered her demands. "If you want to win, then you will trust my instructions." The voice continued to speak to her with a confident tone in his words.

"To win?" she breathed. I don't like it, but I've got no choice, she resigned to herself. I'm done for at this rate unless a miracle happens, so I might as well see if this guy's good on his promises.

Kallen piloted her Glasgow onto the nearest train tracks, spun her land spinners at full speed, and sent her Knightmare west, just like the voice had told her. She noticed that her twin shadows were still following her closely as they trailed her onto the tracks.

"What am I doing next?" she asked her potential savior.

"Since you have followed my suggestion, you're going to be victorious here," the voice assured her. Kallen noticed a freight train on the same tracks she was travelling on, except that the freight was speeding directly at her. "Now jump onto the train!" the voice ordered her.

She immediately followed the order and had her Glasgow jump onto the main car and continued to have her Knightmare hop from car to car as she traversed atop of the train.

Once she'd reached the seventh train car, Kallen turned her Glasgow around in order to see how her Britannian 'friends' had reacted. She witnessed one of the two Sutherlands get hit and destroyed by a pair of Sutherland slash harkens. She immediately spun her land spinners at full speed and charged her Glasgow towards her now lone Sutherland pursuer.

She then saw one of the Britannian Knightmare's land spinners get destroyed as she continued to charge.

The Sutherland's pilot had apparently noticed her, because its manual ejection-seat mechanism activated and the Knightmare's cockpit ignited it's boosters in order to quickly retreat from the fight.

"Thanks for that," she said into her personal communicator to the voice. "But how did you get your hands on a Sutherland?" She then looked towards the building where she'd seen those slash harkens retreat back to, but there was only a crumbling building in her sight. "Where'd he go?" she wondered.

"Kallen!" Ohgi's voice came from her communicator this time. "Who was that on the radio earlier?" he asked her.

"You mean that he contacted you too?" she replied as her friends from the resistance movement came up to her Glasgow.

Ohgi nodded at her inquiry.

His radio then buzzed with static before the voice decided to return to them. "Are you the one who's in charge here?" the voice asked of the group's de facto leader since Naoto died.

"Uh," Ohgi nervously began. "Yeah, I guess." Ohgi appeared to be quite nervous at speaking to Kallen's savior.

"I give you the tools to your victory." The voice deliberately emphasized that word as he responded to Ohgi. "The cargo of that train should be more than enough. If you want to defeat your oppressors here and push them back, then you will follow my orders to the letter."

Kallen's sapphire eyes widened in amazement as she opened the freight train's cargo cars. Before the resistance group were many brand-new top-of-the-line Britannian Knightmares. "You've gotten a hold of this many Sutherlands?" she asked the voice, her voice revealing her wonder at his gifts.

More than enough Sutherlands for her comrades were lined up within each train car. At the final tally, there was twenty Knightmares within the freight train. Each one fully equipped, just like the ones being used to destroy the Shinjuku ghetto she was fighting to protect.

Kallen saw Tamaki drooling at the sight. "Whoever this 'voice' guy is," the red-headed idiot began, "he sure knows how to treat his subordinates."

"Pilot of the Glasgow." The voice was calling to her once more. "Recharge your energy filler. You and your unit will be running decoy. I'll contact you all in ten minutes with my next instructions." The line went silent as the voice finished saying what he'd order them to do next.

Kallen was in complete disbelief at what she'd just witnessed. "_Not only did he obtain a Sutherland for himself,"_ she thought, "_but this guy has just given the entire resistance movement the means to fight back. Just who is this guy_?" Kallen pondered to herself.

Ohgi's voice came from her communicator next. "Kallen," he called. "We need to recharge your energy filler."

Kallen quickly snapped out of her daze after Ohgi had called her. "Roger that," she affirmed. She then moved her Glasgow over to the energy filler recharge station that was so conveniently located at the very rear of the freight train they were borrowing.

* * *

_Zero and White Witch_

"Now all the condition are almost met." Lelouch said as he took out his phone and dialed a number.

"Hello" said the voice on the other side.

"Rai it's me, the plan has been accelerated, how fast can you get Arashi to the Shinjuku ghetto?" Lelouch asked.

"Not long if I take the subway systems, since I am currently at the workshop." The now identified Rai said.

"Good get here as soon as possible and use plan sigma" Lelouch said.

"Roger, I'll be there as soon as possible." Rai said before hanging up.

After Rai hung up Lelouch heard movement behind him and instantly drew a knife that was concealed in his sleeves and turned around quickly. What he saw shocked him. The Green haired girl from before was alive.

"Now it isn't polite to stare." Said the green haired girl.

"Who are you and how are you alive!" Lelouch exclaims. "My name is C.C., and I am immortal." Stated C.C. without emotion.

"I don't have time for this right now, can you keep quiet until this battle is over then we can discuss the power you gave me" Lelouch stated.

"Very well but you owe me a pizza then." C.C. said in a completely serious tone. Surprised by this answer Lelouch then decide to ignore the immortal.

He then flipped on the communicator and began to list out his instructions.

"I'm about to give you your codenames and preliminary objectives for the operations. Are you ready?"

* * *

_Lotus_

Her radio's static brought Kallen back from her thought as it came to life. "I'm about give you your codenames and preliminary objectives for the operations. Are you ready?"

The voice quickly gave every one code-names.

"Wait, what do we call you then?" Asked Kallen.

"Hm, for now you can call me K-1." said K-1

"Right every one you know the plans, P-1 and P-2 move to sector delta-6 to set up an ambush amongst the buildings effectively guarding the rear of R company, N-1 and N-2 will assist will assist R company I want you and P-3 through to P-8 to move down the center you're the main distraction here, the rest of N company will move on flanks of R company able to ambush any attackers from the sides and Q-1 stay with me we will dictate the battle from high ground." said K-1 as he went over the plan.

"Wait wait hold it hold it!" yelled P-5 "There is no IFFs on these things, what if it's a trap." Yelled Tamaki

"The enemy has the total advantage in this war, they have no need to set traps." said Ohgi

"Well said P-1, well move out!" Exclaimed K-1

* * *

**30 minutes later.**

* * *

_Zero and White Witch_

Lelouch estimated that Clovis was beginning to panic now.

A mere thirty minutes, that's all it takes to put you in your place 'brother,' he smirked to himself.

He and C.C. were hiding together in the Sutherland that he'd stolen from Viletta, far away from the battle.

Lelouch looked down at the layout map of the Shinjuku ghetto that his Sutherland had uploaded into it when Viletta had been deployed.

He pressed down on his stolen communicator's receiver. "Q-1, do you have a map of the local area?" he asked her again.

His radio static preceded Kallen's familiar voice. "Yes I have a layout of the old settlement," she answered," but it has no current landmarks."

"It'll do," he assured her.

Lelouch's Sutherland's internal computer console beeped as the desired file arrived for his viewing.

He then opened the file, Lelouch quickly memorized the layout of the ghetto Kallen had provided him.

"Q-1," he began to recite the same orders he'd given them last time. "Take your group and descend below your current position."

"How?" his radio transmitted with the fiery red head's voice.

Lelouch smirked. "Enter the subway station that is one-hundred meters west of your current position. You will then immediately move at full speed back east, remaining underground as you do so."

"Very well," Kallen acknowledged his orders.

"Now Q-1," he told her once more. "Turn your Glasgow around and use your slash harkens to collapse the ceiling twenty meters behind you. After your harkens have retracted, move your Glasgow at full speed away from the area and you and your unit are to join up with P-1 and P-5 as you exit the subway. The appropriate exit is another hundred meters eastward."

"Roger," Kallen confirmed her orders.

"With this Clovis," he said. "I call check."

Lelouch watched with a great amount of pride building up in his chest as he witnessed a few dozen "LOST" icons appear from where Clovis had foolishly sent the bulk of his Knightmare forces because of the floor collapsing from underneath them.

"I can do this, I can win." Lelouch said smirking.

* * *

_Lotus_

Kallen had just arrived at the rendezvous point that K-1 had given her over the radio.

It was only a brief moment before both Ohgi and Tamaki's units arrived at the point as well.

"Kallen!" Ohgi exclaimed over the communicator channel. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." she replied.

Ohgi yelled over the radio. "We still have our next objective to take care of."

"This is N group!" Kallen's radio transmitted. "We've got a problem here!"

"Yoshida! Report!" Ohgi was using his seldom-used leader voice as he ordered over the radio.

Yoshida sounds panicky. What's happening over there? Kallen leaned in closer to her radio in order to listen closely to her friend.

"We're being wiped out!" Yoshida screamed back over the radio. "Send reinforcements immediately!" Yoshida's voice cracked in and out from the radio as he hysterically screamed for assistance.

"R group, what's your current status?" Ohgi commanded over the radio since Zero hadn't responded to the crisis.

Kallen's spine chilled as her radio remained silent. There was no response from Sugiyama's group.

"B group report!" Ohgi continued to yell over the radio.

No response from Inoue either.

"Yoshida, report your situation damn it!" Ohgi began to sound a little frantic over the radio channel.

"It's just one!" Yoshida screamed over the radio. "It's only one-" Kallen's radio began to emit nothing but static as Yoshida's voice cut off.

"Q-1, P-1 are there any other units' left." asked K-1

"None, just our units!" said Ohgi in a panicked voice.

"Damn, Retreat to alpha point an hide behind the buildings there to prepare an ambush, me and my ace in the hole are coming so hide until you see a Sutherland accompanied by a black knightmare with red highlights" said K-1

"Roger that." Shouted Kallen and Ohgi as they moved to point alpha

* * *

_Tempest_

"Lelouch I reached the point you told me to meet you, where are you?" asked Rai

"Right here" said Lelouch as he pulled up in his Sutherland "Now while I wait for the others to arrive, let's trade knightmares. You take this Sutherland back to base so you can outfit and analysis it."

"Right then" said Rai as he got out.

* * *

_Lotus_

"Ok we're here, so where are you" Kallen said

"I am are over here" boomed a voice in a speaker

Kallen, Ohgi and the others turn to see a very unique sight before them. There was a very advanced knightmare frame. It was completely black with orange-red highlights (The Vincent but with black for the gold parts and rust orange for the other parts).

"What is that?" asked Kallen

"This Q-1 is the Arashi, and only the tip of the Iceberg. Now time to set a trap for Britannia's secret weapon."

* * *

_White Knight and The Tinkerer_

"I can win this, with this Lancelot I can finally end all this unnecessary violence." Suzaku said to himself.

A beep went off in the cockpit of the Lancelot.

"It seems that we have managed to get a hold of the enemies units signal." Lloyd said in an excited manner.

"You're not to take any risks; the Lancelot doesn't have an ejection unit." Cecile stated.

"I understand," he replied.

"Lancelot, activating ME boost," he reported.

He rounded a bend and spotted another Sutherland ahead of him. No IFF was being broadcast, so it was a Terrorist. The Sutherland appeared to become aware of him and turned to face him leveling its rifle. He threw Lancelot into an evasive Zigzag avoiding the Sutherland's fire. The gap between them closed quickly. He threw a fist into the Sutherland's face and with one strike removed its head. The cockpit ejected half a second later.

He then moved to move the Lancelot forward.

The Lancelot smashed a Sutherland into a building and sent another falling to the ground as the new knightmare continued to dominate the battle. The remaining Sutherlands continued to fire their assault rifles at it as it appeared between two buildings, but the knightmare handily dodged the bullets, using the two buildings at either side to springboard itself away from the hail of bullets and performed a midair twirl before rushing at one Sutherland and practically clotheslined it to the ground, even as its pilot, Tamaki screamed in fear.

Meanwhile, the Lancelot continued its work as inside the Yggdrasil Drive, everything continued to spin round the cube as the Yggdrasil Resonance even started to accelerate.

"These readings are even higher than predicted," Cecile reported inside the control center of the SRDT as she looked over a monitor on a control panel with pleased Lloyd.

"It's because our pilot is taking his job very seriously," Lloyd commented after he adjusted his glasses, though he was a bit disappointed that Suzaku was not showing off as he wanted to see what his newest invention could do for as long as possible; but the data that was being collected so far was enough for now.

In the ghetto, the terrorist Sutherlands continued to fall as the new knightmare rose into the air with its arms spread wide as its slash harkens recoiled and crisscrossed in front of it as they did so.

Inside the Lancelot's cockpit, Suzaku maintained a serious expression as he held a hand to his wounded side, clearly not having fully recovered from the wound and the intensity of piloting the Lancelot only seemed to make it worse and aggravate the wound even more. However, Suzaku did his best to ignore the pain. He still had a job to do and he was determined to see it through.

"If I can stop all of the knightmares, then this battle is over," he thought, remembering Lelouch and that mysterious girl in the capsule and how he needed to save them.

Suzaku display monitor scanned the area and a red box with the word, "ALERT" in yellow lettering directed his attention towards a plaza and the crosshairs locked onto a red Glasgow standing in the middle of the plaza.

"Huh?" he said before determination flooded his eyes, "So the enemy's main unit is there?"

Suzaku rushed at the Glasgow and clotheslined it. However when he did that the Glasgow exploded almost immediately, damaging the Lancelot's left arm, chest area and its left factsphere.

"Gah" Suzaku cried, "A suicide attack?!"

Suzaku then was shot at by several Sutherlands at the base of a large building.

"Darn it" Suzaku said as he activated the blaze luminous on the Lancelot's arms deflecting the bullets.

His display monitor flashed red with "ALERT" in yellow showing heavy damage to the left blaze luminous. "Shit" Suzaku said as the left blaze luminous deactivated, and he was forced to move the Lancelot

"Suzaku, the Lancelot is showing heavy damage to the left factsphere, and the left blaze luminous has shut down, what's going on." Asked Cecile.

"A Suicide attack damaged them." Suzaku replied while dodging the bullets from the Sutherlands. The Sutherlands suddenly stopped firing, causing Suzaku to tense up as his right factsphere sensed an enemy unit approaching him rapidly from above.

Looking up on the monitor, he noticed a new knightmare high above his machine diving downwards towards him at a quick rate. Suzaku had the Lancelot cross its arms in order to block the blow. The kick however, damaged the Lancelot's right fore-arm and sent the Lancelot sprawling back on the plaza.

Quickly getting up from the street, Suzaku stopped for a moment to catch his breath and observe the enemy knightmare.

It was a very advanced knightmare frame. It was completely black with orange-red highlights and looked like a black knight from old stories.

The Knightmare didn't give Suzaku a chance to recover though, as it quickly charged forward with a punch.

The Knightmare's fist came very close to hitting before the Suzaku made the Lancelot side step and counter with its own punch. However, before the punch could land, the black Knightmare utilized the its elbow to parry the attack and then use its other elbow to strike directly at the Lancelot's chest. Suzaku was very surprised at the skills of the pilot within the black Knightmare.

Cautiously Lancelot shifted its weight to its legs and instead of using its land spinner to take off; it lunged forward at the black Knightmare that stood before it. Skillfully the Knightmare maneuvered out of the way and fired its hip-mounted slash harkens at the Lancelot's land spinners.

Suzaku saw what the knightmare was doing and quickly flipped backwards to avoid being hit. This proved to be a mistake, because the knightmare fired a pair of slash harkens at the Lancelot's land spinners and managed to damage both of them.

"How does he keep knowing what I am going to do?" Suzaku cursed as he made the Lancelot shoot out its slash harkens. The black Knightmare easily dodged it, and when the slash harken retracted the Knightmare grabbed onto it letting itself be pulled in.

At blinding speeds the Knightmare sent a knee at the Lancelot's other undamaged factsphere, destroying it. Suzaku cursed as he was yet again caught off guard, quickly he backed away again to gain distance before firing three slash harkens at her.

It easily dodged these attacks and began to move forward in order to attack.

Suzaku couldn't think of anything to do as the black Knightmare came in closer. Lancelot's specs were higher than other machine's, but aside slash harkens Lancelot had no weapons. Besides Lancelot hadn't come out completely fine from earlier battles and Suzaku could feel his wound beginning to open.

As Suzaku quickly backed off, the Knightmare fired its shoulder slash Harkins at the Lancelot. Suzaku dodged to the left while backing up however the slash harken wasn't aimed at him, but behind him causing enough damage to the road for the Lancelot to stumble a bit. As the Lancelot lost its balance the knightmare shot forward with even more speed than before. It appeared before the Lancelot with one arm reared back for a final attack. Suzaku thinking quickly, brought up the arms of his knightmare blocking the fist but sending the Lancelot onto the ground, the fall finally breaking the land spinners.

Suzaku looked up to see the knightmare releasing a large amount of black smoke. Then a series of explosions went off behind Suzaku. "What the!" Suzaku yelled as he saw with the Lancelot's remaining factsphere, the building behind him fall directly on top of him.

* * *

_Zero and Lotus and The Teacher_

"He won, he actually won!" Kallen exclaimed excitedly.

"Yeah, he proved to be a genius traction, a highly skilled Knightmare pilot, and that he has access to high end resources." Ohgi said to himself while thinking back to the plan the voice thought out before the fight.

* * *

**Five minutes earlier**

"While that is a nice Knightmare, how do you plan to stop that monster that is decimating our Knightmares?" Kallen asked, part in frustration and part in curiosity.

"Easy we set a trap for him, Q-1 get out of your knightmare and take one of the other members Sutherland, that member will double up with one of the other people still in knightmares." The voice said.

"Ok, but why do I need to get out of my knightmare?" Kallen asked in frustration.

"Because we are going to turn your Glasgow in to a remote mine, so when the secret weapon comes to attack it, I detonate it in his face. Then I will engage him in battle and destroy his knightmare. If necessary I have planted bombs on that dilapidated building so that it will collapse onto a certain spot, smashing the special unit." explained the voice.

"Alright you heard him, let's get this trap set up." Ohgi yelled to everyone.

* * *

**Present Time**

"Well here he comes now." Kallen said in an excited tone.

"Now that that is over with it is time to move on to the final stage of my plan." the voice said.

"What do we do now?" Asked Ohgi

"For now have all the other remaining members of your group return to your base, while you, Q-1, and I finish this battle." Responded the voice on the radio.

"Alright do what he said, but do you have a codename we can call you by?" Asked Ohgi

"Hm, for now simply call me Zero" answered Zero.

"Zero, as in nothing?" asked Kallen.

"Yes, but we have to hurry to point sigma in order to complete my plan" Zero said. "Once we get there I am going to need you two to guard my knightmare while I sneak into the Britannian Command center and force a ceasefire." Zero explained as they went.

"What, but that is suicide." Kallen exclaimed worried for the person going out of their way to help them.

"Don't worry I am a master at stealth, espionage, and assassination. With that, and the fact that I stole the Uniform off of one of the soldiers I killed earlier to prepare for this." Zero said with confidence.

"All right, I may not like it but good luck we will make sure no one touches the Arashi while you're gone." Ohgi said

"Good I knew I could count on you two" Zero said as he jumped out of the cockpit and took off running very fast toward the G-1 base.

* * *

_The Idiot_

Tamaki ran into a corner, then turned around to see several Britannian soldiers pointing their guns at a large group of Japanese people.

"Ready, aim, f.." the man in charge started to say before being cut off.

"Attention all forces, cease fire at once." Clovis' voice boomed

"I Clovis, Third Prince of Britannia and Royal Viceroy of Area Eleven hereby command you," the voice of Clovis continued to boom from the Command Centre's PA speakers, "All forces are ordered to cease fire at once. You will also cease destruction of any buildings or property. All casualties, whether Britannian or Eleven will be treated equally and without prejudice. In the name of Clovis la Britannia, you're hereby ordered, cease fire at once. I shall allow no further fighting."

Everyone in the ghetto were all confused regardless of whether they were Britannians or Japanese and they all had the same thought on their minds. What was going on and why did Prince Clovis order a ceasefire? The Japanese were not complaining though. It had saved their lives, though Tamaki was feeling rather infuriated as he guessed that whoever it was that contacted them must have had something to do with it and he had just had credit stolen from him. Still, he did not complain as it did save his life, no matter how much it infuriated him.

"Huh, that voice managed to pull it off, I knew he could do it." Yelled Tamaki to the other resistance members who were forced to eject and were now in there hideout along with many Japanese civilians.

* * *

_Lotus and The Teacher_

"He managed to do it. How did he get past security?" Kallen said from where she and Ohgi were guarding their mysterious leader's Knightmare.

"No idea, but this proves what this guy is capable of, we should try and make him our leader." Ohgi said.

"No way, Ohgi you are our leader!" Kallen said indignantly.

"Kallen, he just accomplished the first real victory against Britannia since the miracle of Itsukushima, he is much more qualified to lead than me." Ohgi explained.

"Fine we will ask him when he gets back." Kallen reluctantly agreed.

* * *

_Zero and The Painter_

At the G-1 Base, Clovis calmly asks "Are you satisfied."

"Very, well done." Lelouch said.

"And what shall we do now, sing a few lively ballads. Or perhaps a lively game of chess." Clovis mocked.

"Chess, I was under the impression that we just finished playing. You really are an atrocious player, even after seven years you still can't beat me in a single match." Lelouch said.

"Who, are you?!" Clovis asked angrily.

"Very, well." Lelouch stated as he walked into the light.

Upon seeing his face, Clovis' eyes widened in pure shock and disbelief at just who it was that was standing there.

"Lelouch vi Britannia, son of the late Consort Marianne and 98th Emperor Charles Zi Britannia, former Eleventh Prince and seventeenth in line of succession." the Lelouch said as he brandished a gun and walked in front of Clovis' throne and dropped into a kneeling position while still keeping mask so that camera couldn't film it and in his neck was voice modulator to distort his real voice.

"I have returned Your Highness," Lelouch said while rising, "And I've come back to change everything."

"I'm overjoyed that you're alive. They said you died when Japan was brought into the fold. What a blessing to have to back. We should depart for the homeland immediately."

"So I can be used as that man's diplomatic puppets?" Lelouch replied in a disgusted tone as his glare on royals intensified, causing them to tremble, "It seems you've forgotten why we were used as tools in the first place."

Clovis' eyes widened in realization.

"That's right," Lelouch went on with a dangerously and menacingly calm look in his eyes as he put mask back in his face, "It's because Lady Marianne, my mother was killed. Lady Marianne held the title Knight of Honor and was also the Knight of Six during her time in the Knights of the Round, but was a commoner by birth," Lelouch stated.

"I didn't have anything to do with that." Clovis said desperately.

"Then tell me everything you know about my mother's death and about the project involving that green haired girl!" Lelouch said as he activated his Geass.

For a brief moment, Clovis felt a strange sensation enter his right eye before his expression became emotionless and he relaxed.

"My brother, Second Prince Schneizel and Second Princess Cornelia; they can tell you more about your mother's death" Clovis said in an emotionless tone.

"Wha…? Cornelia… she was at the heart of this?" Lelouch said in absolute disbelief, "No way. Cornelia respected and looked up to Lady Marianne. There's no way she could have been in on her assassination. I can believe Schneizel, but Cornelia… that's impossible."

Clovis then closed his mouth and remained unresponsive.

"What about the experiments involving the green haired girl?" Lelouch asked with a sigh.

"She was the focus of project Code R. She is an immortal being with strange powers, which Code R sought to replicate. When we were not making progress, we used her as a test subject for both cybernetic enhancement and a neural interfacing system. Though there were many fatal errors, we have complete both of the projects, so she was being moved to the new lab under the Narita Mountains where all the research is being kept." Clovis droned.

"What codes are necessary to access this area," Lelouch commanded, "and can this information be accessed remotely?"

"The password is time begets machines. The base door code is 3748. My ring contains a code that allows me to access any information in area 11 without it being traced." Clovis Droned.

Lelouch then took his eyes off Clovis who only let out a surprised gasp as he wondered what had just happened.

"I swear it wasn't me," he said in a panicked tone and he pressed his back up against the throne and brought himself forward and brought his hands up in front of himself in a defensive gesture, "I had nothing to do with it."

"I believe you." Lelouch said as he pointed his gun at Clovis. "However..."

"You can't!" Clovis begged him. "You and I may have different mothers but you and I are still blood!"

"Sorry, you are too involved in Project-R and this genocide of the Japanese people." Lelouch stated with pity as he aimed his gun at Clovis' face "You should've stayed with painting." And Clovis died with a bullet in his head and shock on his face.

Lelouch stared down at the corpse for a moment before eying the black diamond ring on Clovis' finger and took it.

"Such a small inconspicuous device, containing a program that is capable of accessing all of the information in Area 11, such a useful little treasonous device." Lelouch stated before beginning to laugh madly.

* * *

Authors note

Wow when I posted this story, I had no Idea of the popular response it would receive. Thanks for the follows, favorites and reviews. Any questions you have post in a review and I will do my best to respond to them.


	2. Welcome to the Team

Early Start: Welcome to the Team

"_Thoughts_"

"Speech"

Action

**Time**

CUSTOMARY DISCLAIMER: I do not, nor have in any way, ever owned anything to do with the original anime or story which my fan fictions are based off of. These stories are written for the sole purpose of entertainment, and not meant to achieve any profit through selling it.

* * *

**Last Time**

"I believe you," Lelouch said as he pointed his gun at, "However..."

"You can't!" Clovis begged of him. "You and I may have different mothers but you and I are still blood!"

"Sorry, you are too involved in Project-R and this genocide of the japanese people." Lelouch stated with pity as he aimed his gun at Clovis' face "You should've stayed with painting."

* * *

**Now**

_Orange and The Pure_

"Why are we letting the filthy elevens go?" demanded Kewell.

"You heard Viceroy Clovis." Jerimiah said.

"Contact General Bartley, find out whats going on." demanded Kewell.

"General Bartley isn't responding, sir." said a random officer.

"What, get me one of the other generals then." Jerimiah ordered.

"Their, not responding either." responded the officer.

"What is going on in there?" questioned Jerimiah.

* * *

_Zero and Lotus and The Teacher_

"Look, here he comes" Kallen said "you can talk to him now Ohgi."

"Good I knew I could count on you Q-1, P-1." Said Zero as he walked up to the Arashi still wearing a full Britannian military uniform.

"Zero, can I talk to you for a minute." Ohgi asked.

"Yes, but make it fast, you need to hide your knightmares and I need to get out before the Arashi is spotted." Zero stated.

"Alright. Zero we would like you to be our Leader." Ohgi said with conviction.

"Huh, you already want me to lead you?" Zero said while Lelouch thought, _This early on they want me to lead, no. P-1 must have seen what I acomplished and is offering this of his own accord._

"While, I am interested in the offer, I will have to take time to consider it." Zero said "Time we don't have at the moment. You two need to hide those knightmares, I will contact you soon." Zero said as he took of in the Arashi.

"Wait, how will you contact us." Kallen yelled through her Sutherland's speakers.

"Kallen, he is right we need to get out of here." Ohgi called, moving his Sutherland toward their hide out.

"Fine." Kallen growled out, moving her sutherland to follow Ohgi's Sutherland

* * *

_Zero and White Witch_

As Lelouch was driving the Arashi through the subway tunnels, he asked "C.C. how did you survive getting shot in the head."

"I thought I told you, I'm Immortal." C.C. stated in a matter of fact way.

"Don't be ridiculous, there is no such thing as immortals." Lelouch stated.

"Then how do explain the power I gave you?" C.C. said smugly.

"Fine, your immortal. However when we get back to my base, you are going to answer all of my questions." Lelouch said after a long pause.

"Feel free to ask about anything at all, however that does not mean I will answer." C.C. said.

"Frustrating immortal." Lelouch grumbled.

"Wow, you skipped straight from denial to acceptance, skipping the other three steps. That is very impressive." C.C. said with a mocking smile.

Lelouch wisely ignored her and they spent the rest of the trip in silence.

* * *

**Secret Base**

_Zero and White Witch and Tempest and Gear_

The Arashi drove in to a dark tunnel and drove to the back wall.

"There is nothing here, Lelouch." C.C. said with a questioning tone in her voice.

"Are you sure, C.C." Lelouch asked as he made the Arashi push a panel on the wall. The section of the floor that the Arashi was standing on began to lower itself into the floor. After it lowered a certain distance a panel slide out, replacing the one they were on, making the floor of the tunnel unbroken once again. The elevator soon slowed to a stop and a door opened in front of the Arashi. As Lelouch moved Arashi through the door a mechanical voice droned "**Arashi prototype model confirmed, anti knightmare turrets disabled**" as two rapid fire turrets on the sides of the door deactivated.

"Aren't you a little paranoid, Lelouch?" C.C. said

"I plan on making an enemy of the entire Britannian Empire, no measure is too extreme." Lelouch replied with conviction as he moved the Arashi into a docking station. Lelouch then opened the cockpit and got out along with C.C. onto the stairs behind the docking station. A mechanical voice then droned " **Arashi prototype model has sustained damage to the frame, prototype will be dissembled for analysis and reconfigured in to Arashi X-01**" where several mechanical arms came out of the dock and began to disassemble the Arashi.

"You have a very advanced computer system here." C.C. said looking around.

Lelouch ignored her and kept walking out of the knightmare hanger. C.C. shrugged at being ignored and followed Lelouch into the next room. She saw Lelouch typing a password on a small wall pad. Lelouch the put his eye up to the pad which opened to show a retinal scanner that quickly scanned a blue light over Lelouch's eye. "Lelouch" Lelouch said into the pad. Two turrets quickly popped out of the side of the door and took aim at C.C. "and visitor" Lelouch finished causing the turrets to pop back into the wall.

"Yeah, you are definitely paranoid." C.C. mocked.

The door opened into an advanced workshop with many inventions scattered throughout the room with no decipherable order. At the back of the work shop were two people hunched over a computer and discussing something furiously.

"Aren't you two going to say hello?" Lelouch questioned.

One of the shadows quickly turned around, gasped then pushed a button on its chair. The chair then quickly slid towards Lelouch. When it got close enough the shadow grabbed Lelouch's hand and pulled him into a hug with a cry of "oni-san!".

Now that the figure was no longer in the shadows, C.C. could see that the person was a young girl with long brown hair in an advanced wheel chair wearing black wrap around sunglasses with circuitry on them.

"Thank you for the present Lelouch, Rai and I had a lot of fun taking it apart." Nunnally said with a smile.

"If your refering to the Sutherland Rai brought back, then I hope you had fun" Lelouch said calmly "but I also hope you can build something with it, not just mess with it." Lelouch finished sternly.

"Hey, don't talk about me like I am not even here" said the shadow indignantly. The shadow stepped into the light from the hallway, reavealing it to be a young japanese man with stark white hair and a very angular face. "So earlier when I gave you Arashi I did not have time to ask, but who is she?" Rai asked while pointing at C.C.

"She was the test subject for Code-R, you know the secret project that we were only able to find out rumors about." Lelouch said.

"Wait, Clovis was allowing human experimentation." Nunnally said in a shocked voice.

"Not only that, but in order to cover it up he tried to completely kill all of the Japanese in the Shinjuku ghetto." Lelouch said "But in order to stop him I had to kill him."

"It is sad to see that Clovis fell so far, I always remember him being so kind to us and being so interested in painting." Nunnally said sorrowfully. "But what was the project about."

"The project created to design nueral uplink tecnology, human cybernetic upgades and replicating her immortality. I have the access codes to the project here." Lelouch said as he handed Nunnally the paper with the base access codes. "I also wanted to give you this Nunnally" Lelouch said as he pulled out Clovis' black dimond ring, "This contains a program that allowed Clovis to acesses all the information in Area eleven untraced."

"Hm, something like this probably won't work for long once the new viceroy takes control. However while it still works, Rai can use it to download all current millitary data from Area eleven." Nunnally said

"Hey, don't just recomend me for things like that." Rai said, angry at being ignored.

"Won't you pleeaeese do if for me, Rai-Kun. You wouldn't want me to have to miss school to do it would you?" Nunnally begged with a very cute expression on her face.

"Fine, but you owe me a favor." Rai said giving into Nunnally's pressuring.

"Well, Nunnally and I need to get back to the dorms, so Milly doesn't get suspicious." Lelouch said taking the back of Nunnally's wheelchair and wheeling her down the hall with C.C. following them to a small elevator that opened with a ding.

"We will talk more about C.C. tommorow, right now I am very tired." Lelouch said.

"Alright, but don't forget to visit, I will call you when I download all the military weaponry advancements and blueprints on military basses." Rai called as the elevator door closed.

* * *

_Zero and White Which and Gear_

While the elevator was going up, Nunnally decide to talk to C.C.

"So, C.C. how did you meet brother?" Nunnally asked.

"He made a promise to fulfill my one wish." C.C. said in an even voice.

"Brother, you are getting married? Why didn't you tell me. You better invite me and Rai to the wedding." Nunnally teased.

"That is not what C.C. meant, Nunnally. Clovis was experimenting on C.C. in order to replicate her immortality. She gave me a power and in exchange I have to grant one wish of hers, that she still has not yet told me about yet." Lelouch explained.

"Geeze Lelouch, you really need to lighten up. I was only joking. However tomorrow C.C. needs to explain this power." Nunnally said in a light tone.

"I may or may not answerer your questions depending on the question." C.C. said.

Nunnally frowned at the non-comital answer from C.C but didn't say anything about it.

The elevator door opened up to reveal that they were in the Ashford Academy library. After they all left the elevator, a book shelf raised up from the floor to cover the elevator doors.

"Alright since it is late, Nunnally you need to go to bed while I show C.C. to where she will be sleeping." Lelouch said.

"Where will she be sleeping, Lelouch." Nunnally asked curiously

"For now she can use my bed. I have a mat that I can sleep on until we make different arrangements for C.C." Lelouch said.

"My what a gentleman, Lelouch." C.C. said as Lelouch showed her to his room.

"Just go to sleep C.C., I have had a very long day." Lelouch said as he set out his sleeping mat and pillow and laid down on it.

"Very well. Good night, Lelouch" C.C. said as she heard Lelouch's light breathing

* * *

**The Next Day**

**Ashford Academy**

_Zero and Innocents_

Lelouch walked into the student council room, and noticed that every other member was looking at him. "What?" Lelouch asked.

"I see you finally decided to join us Lelouch." Milly said in a playful way.

"Yeah," Lelouch answered. "I was just eating breakfast with Nunnally when you sent out your distress signal."

"Speaking of distress," Rivalz said as he took his seat to Lelouch's left. "Just how did you make it out of the ghetto?" Rivalz sounded rather concerned for his friend.

"I got of the truck when it went underground then followed the path back to the settlement." Lelouch said calmly.

Shirley looked hysterical. "Lulu! Thank god you made it back. Are you hurt? Are you fine?" Shirley asked her questions so quickly that she was short of breath.

"No, I am fine Shirley" Lelouch said to placate the panicked girl.

"Thank goodness that you're okay Lulu," Shirley then sighed in relief

Lelouch nodded back to everyone. "Thanks for being so concerned everybody. I really appreciate it." He then turned towards his longtime friend, Milly. "By the way Prez. What was so important that you needed to use a distress signal?"

Milly energetically clapped her hands together after his question. "Oh! That's right! We need to find a way to fix the club activities budget before the end of the day."

Shirley looked dumbfounded. "Why do we need to fix it?" she asked her President.

Lelouch sighed. "Because it isn't balanced," he told her. He then glared at Milly. "I told you that it wasn't balanced a month ago Milly. Why did you decide to procrastinate so much?"

"We have an hour before classes start, so why don't we try and get this done before then," Milly told them, avoiding the question.

"You know that we might actually be able to reach that deadline if you decided to actually help do the legwork, right?" Rivalz told the blonde woman.

* * *

_Zero and Lotus_

About thirty minutes had passed and, through Lelouch's financial guidance, they were nearing their goal finally.

"Can't we just put this off until tomorrow," Rivalz groaned.

"GUTS!" Milly roared.

Rivalz grimaced as Milly's 'magic' reached his eardrums. "Are you trying that whole 'guts' spell again?" the blue-haired Secretary asked her.

"You know that magic doesn't exist, right Milly?" Lelouch probed.

"Actually, you've got me going Madam President!" Shirley was energetic as ever, flexing her arms as she told them.

Milly's lips slid upwards into a sly grin. "Supple _and_ willing. I like that," she told the orange-haired young woman.

Shirley, oblivious to what the lecherous president was really saying, replied with, "I work hard in my Gymnastics Club."

Lelouch couldn't help but grin as he figured out where Milly was going.

"That's not what I meant," the blonde bombshell told the oblivious young orangette. Milly's eyes slowly moved upwards as they took in Shirley's slender figure. "You're a ten. At least from what I've seen in the girl's bathroom anyways."

"Oh, ho." Rivalz leaned over the table and leered at the unfortunate soul that was Shirley Fenette at the moment.

Shirley crossed her arms in order to attempt to hide her breasts from the perverse stare of the blonde beauty. "What are you talking about you pervert?" Shirley demanded.

"I mean that you're filling out in all the right places," Milly said.

Lelouch stood up from the table. "The budget's balanced," he said to Milly as he put the stack of papers he'd been working on in the President's hands. "I'll see you guys in class then," he said as he walked out of the room.

_How should I contact that group from the other day, they all seem pretty reliable. Especially Q-1, ace pilots are very hard to find. I was lucky enough to find Rai, if we plan to beat Britannian we will need forces that can defeat the knights of the Round. I know I can take care of some and Rai can take some, but we need someone who can defeat Bismark._

He was so deep in his thoughts that he didn't notice the short, crimson-haired young woman come around the corner and they both ran into each other. Both of them fell on the ground, the papers that she'd been carrying with her falling everywhere around the two of them.

"I'm sorry. I didn't see-"

Lelouch wasn't able to finish what he'd begun apologizing for.

_Q-1._

The sight of the young red-haired young woman took over his thoughts. He was temporarily suprised to see her in Ashford. _That's where I remember seeing her, she was a student here last year, what was her name?_

Kallen was rubbing her bottom saying, "Ow, ow, ow."

Lelouch quickly stood himself up and offered the beautiful woman his hand. "Here," he said to her.

Kallen's head tilted slightly and she asked, "Who are you?" Kallen was using her fake, sickly tone.

_I like you better when you're being yourself, like when your fighting. Not when you act like this,_ he thought to himself while still extending his hand to her. Lelouch smiled. "I'm Lelouch Lamperouge," he introduced himself. "I'm the Student Council Vice-President. It's good that you're back Kallen.

"Do I know you?" she asked as Lelouch helped her to her feet.

Lelouch kept his warm smile as he told her, "It's been a long while, so I don't really blame you for not remembering me. We're in the same class." He then bent over and began to pick up the papers Kallen had been carrying with her before they'd bumped into each other.

Kallen realized what Lelouch was doing and quickly began to help him collect her scattered papers.

"So are you feeling any better?" Lelouch asked her as he handed Kallen the rest of her papers that he'd collected.

Kallen nodded and then meekly said, "I'm sorry for not remembering who you were."

"Don't worry about it." Lelouch waved his hand before him to further emphasize his statement. "I'm just glad that you're back. I don't blame you for not remembering me."

Lelouch looked up at the clock "Kallen, we need to hurry to get to clase, let me guide you there since it has been a while for you." He then grabbed Kallen's hand and began to guide her to their class.

Kallen blushed at the contact and meekly began to walk beside Lelouch as they walked across campus to their first class.

"So how was your time away?" Lelouch used his conversation-starter.

"Boring." Kallen responded.

Lelouch gently pulled Kallen out of the way of a group of students walking towards them that didn't notice them.

Lelouch noticed Kallen's face was red as he let go of her.

"Are you sure that you're okay?" he asked her as they stopped outside of their first classroom. He then placed the back of his palm on her forehead to take her temperature. "Your face is burning."

Kallen shook his hand off of her. "I'm fine…" she whispered.

"Are you sure?" he asked her. "I can help you to the nurse's office if you'd like." Kallen's cheeks reddened the more that Lelouch maintained the contact between them.

"I said I'm fine!" Kallen snapped at him. She then realized that she'd gone out of character and quickly returned to her façade of a sickly girl. "Anyways, thanks for walking me to my class. I really appreciate it." Kallen bowed slightly, her large stack of papers clutched to her chest, to offer her thanks.

Lelouch laughed at the gesture. _You really aren't meant to be docile, Q-1_ he thought as she stood up. "Don't worry; this is my first class as well. Plus it was nice to walk with a beautiful girl than just walk by myself." Lelouch informed her as he opened to door to their classroom. "Ladies first," he said as he motioned with his hand for her to enter first.

"Thank you," Kallen thanked him for the action.

"By the way, are you involved in any clubs?" Lelouch asked her.

Kallen shook her head at his question. "No, I'm not. I'm not really able to join any clubs because of my health. I wouldn't really be able to participate in any club activities."

"That's not good" Lelouch said, "Everyone is required to join a club." Lelouch snapped his fingers. "I have an idea," he told her. "Why don't you join the Student Council?"

Kallen seemed surprised at the notion. "I don't really know," she weakly replied as she averted her eyes.

"You don't have to say yes or no right now," Lelouch informed her. "Why don't I show you around the Student Council building after school? After that, you can tell me if you feel like joining or not."

She nodded after thinking about it for a moment. "I've got nothing planned. It can't really hurt to see if it's something I can join or not."

Lelouch turned and started walking over to his seat after her answer. He waved his hand to her as he was walking and said, "Deal. See you then."

Lelouch took his seat next to Rivalz. _If Q-1 is on the Student council, then it will be easier for her to move around and it will be easier to keep in contact with her group._ Lelouch thought to himself as he saw Kallen take her seat on the other side of the room.

Rivalz noticed Lelouch presence beside him. The blue-haired young man then turned and asked his friend, "You have been looking at Ms. Stadtfelt a lot today buddy. See something you like?"

"I don't know what your talking about, Rivalz. It has just been a while since Kallen has attended school."

"Yeah nice try buddy but I happened to see both you and Ms. Stadtfelt over there walking together." Rivalz wagged his finger. "I also saw that little Ms. Stadtfelt seemed to have a bit of red on her cheeks while you were walking with her. You also refered to her as Kallen proving you are already on fist name basis with her." He then slammed his palms on Lelouch's desk. "Your dating the sick girl don't you, that would explain who you keep cutting class to go see!" Rivalz accused with a knowing look on his face.

Lelouch sighed in disappointment at Rivalz for jumping to conclusions. "I happened to bump into her as I left the meeting," he began to explain. "I helped her find her way back to class since she hasn't been to school in a long time. She also came to school with a bit of a fever, so that might help explain why her cheeks were red. As to why I called her Kallen, it is because I forgot her last name."

"A likely story, Lelouch," Rivalz said with a teasingly condescending tone. "But I know the look of a guy who is in love."

Lelouch smirked as Rivalz stepped into his own trap. "Oh really?" he shot back. "My face looks nothing like yours when you look at Milly."

Rivalz opened his mouth to reply, but he couldn't find the words to fire back at Lelouch. Rivalz closed his mouth and turned back around in his seat.

"Bastard," Rivalz mumbled.

Lelouch couldn't help but laugh at Rivalz.

Lelouch quieted his laughter after a moment and looked towards Kallen, who was eyeing him suspiciously. _So she suspects me, huh? Well I was planning on letting her in eventually, but I need to time it right._ he noted. Lelouch simply gave her a warm smile and waved at her.

Kallen's cheeks flushed red and she quickly turned back around to face the teacher.

_Some of her sick act must not be false. _Lelouch thought. _Now to plan how to tell her in a way that won't get me killed_. Lelouch began to plan out what his next move should be.

Lelouch continued to simply go through the motions of class as the next few hours slowly passed by.

* * *

_Zero and Lotus and Gear_

"Finally!" Rivalz exclaimed as the end-of-the-day bell echoed throughout the school. Rivalz walked over to Lelouch's desk and asked his friend, "Got any plans lover-boy?"

"Yes I do," Lelouch answered. "I am going to ask Kallen if she wants to join the student counsel."

"I know what's really going on!" Rivalz shrieked. "You and Kallen have been-"

"He and I have been what?" Kallen interrupted the blue-haired youth as she walked over.

"I do apologize, Kallen." Lelouch sighed before he continued. "Because of his overactive imagination, he seems to think that he two of us are dating.

Kallen's face turned red. "He what!" she screamed. She then turned and grabbed Rivalz shirt with he hands. "I barely even know Lelouch!" she was yelling. "Why would I date someone that I hardly know?" Kallen demanded, losing her sickly façade for a moment as her anger got the better of her.

Rivalz was shocked at the sight of Kallen's fiery nature and tried to back off.

After Kallen finished yelling at Rivalz for assuming things, she then reverted over to her sickly persona. This attitude change left Rivalz confused, his head hanging as he left.

"I'm sorry about that," Kallen apologized to Lelouch for screaming at his friend.

"You shouldn't," he assured her. "I thought that you looked beautiful when you were scolding him. If only your health was better, I think that it would fit you better." Lelouch said to her, a smile on his face.

Kallen reddened a bit at that. "Yeah, if only I wasn't so sick," she mumbled. Her cheeks quickly returned to their usual complexion. "I think that you promised to show me the Student Council building."

"I did," Lelouch nodded. "Just let me get my things and I'll show you around."

Lelouch quickly gathered up his school equipment and then began to escort his red-haired classmate. He showed her all of the rooms in the building and explained the purpose of each room. He explained the purpose of the Student Council, what events they usually plan, and gave her a brief description of each member position's personal responsibilities. He decided to end the tour in the ballroom.

"…And this is the ballroom," he told her as they entered the large room. "Our President had it built so we have a place to house all of our dances and parties that she plans," Lelouch explained to Kallen.

"Looks rather nice," she admired. "Are there any real perks to joining the Student Counil?"

Lelouch grinned. _There it is._ "There are actually quite a few." Lelouch paused briefly before he continued. "We have access to the school in ways even the teachers don't have." He then leaned over and whispered to her, "My favorite perk would be the underground exit tunnels."

Kallen's eyes widened as the realization dawned on her about all the uses she could have for the escape tunnel he'd just mentioned.

Lelouch leaned back to where he was standing straight and began. "I'm sure that you've heard about me cutting classes. The reason I am able to get away with it is because I leave through these tunnels." Lelouch said.

"Oh. There you are Lelouch. And you brought Kallen with you." Milly came into the ballroom with an apron on while she was pushing a trolly covered with food.

Lelouch cocked an eyebrow at the sight of Milly entering the ballroom. "What are you doing here Madam President?" he asked Milly.

Milly giggled playfully "Didn't you know? I thought that's why you brought her."

"No, I brought her here to offer her a spot on the student council, since she can't do strenious activities" Lelouch replied calmly.

"It seems great minds think alike, Lelouch." Milly said "I decided to induct Kallen into the Student Council."

"You planned on dragging Kallen into the Council anyways. Milly, you can't just decide these things on your own." Lelouch said in an exasperated voice.

"Huh?" Kallen said wondering just what was going on, because it appeared as though she was at the center of it all.

Milly energetically clapped her hands together. "You guys can come in now!" Milly yelled towards the second floor landing of the ballroom.

"Coming Madam President!" Shirley called back.

"On our way Prez!" Rivalz exclaimed next.

Kallen winced when she recognized that second voice. She then leaned over and quietly asked Lelouch, "Is he a Council member too?"

"Yeah," Lelouch sighed. "Don't worry though, he's harmless. Now that you set him straight, he'll make sure to keep his imagination to himself."

"He'd better not." Kallen growled.

"By the way, I'm Milly. Student Council President." Milly extended her hand to Kallen. "Nice to meet you Ms. Stadtfelt."

Kallen took the blonde's hand in turn. "Likewise. But if we're going to be in the same club, you guys can just call me Kallen."

Rivalz, Shirley, and the reclusive Nina came down the ballroom staircase as Milly was extending her greetings to the newest council member and the three of them approached their new co-worker.

"Nice to meet you Kallen. I'm Shirley." The orange-haired girl energetically introduced herself to Kallen.

Rivalz was nervous and cautious since Kallen's repramanding him was still fresh in his mind from earlier. "I'm Rivalz Cardemone. The Secretary. Pleased to make your acquaintance."

Kallen bowed at her waist and apologized to the blue-haired boy. "I'm sorry for going off like that earlier. It was just surprising to come back and already have rumors about me and someone else being an item."

"What's she talking about Rivalz?" Milly asked her admirer.

Lelouch chuckled and spoke up before Rivalz could dig himself a deeper hole with his answer. "Rivalz only got what he deserved. It wasn't anything that you need to worry about Prez."

Rivalz laughed nervously as he scratched his cheek after Lelouch saved his hide.

"I'm Nina," the young green haired girl introduced herself.

Kallen acknowledged the small girl's introduction with a nod. "Nice to meet you."

"Shirley, can you put this on the table for me?" Nunnally said as she rolled up to the table in her wheelchair.

"Oh, sure Nunna," Shirley said as she walked over to help out Lelouch's sister.

"This is Lelouch's little sister, Nunnally." Milly introduced Kallen to the crippled young girl.

"It's nice to meet you Ms. Stadtfelt," Nunnally's gentle voice soothing to the ears. "I'm still in the Middle School group, so I'm not able to become an official Student Council member just yet."

"That's okay," Rivalz told the crippled girl. "You're an honorary member in all our book!"

Lelouch noticed his sister motioning over to him, so he walked over to Nunnally.

"Who is she?" Nunnally whispered to him.

Lelouch whispered back, "She is the Ace pilot I told you about, she's the one the Customized sutherland is for."

"Ok, are you going to reveal your identity to her." Nunnally whispered to him

"I was going to, but do you think I should?" Lelouch whispered to her

"She seems very trustworthy, so you should tell her. Plus our group needs more people that are completely in the loop" Nunnally wispered with conviction.

Lelouch nodded then turned back around and joined Kallen's welcoming party again.

He noticed that Rivalz had just pulled out a green bottle that was filled with a sweet, bubbling liquid. "Let's kick off this party already!" the energetic Rivalz exclaimed.

"Champagne!?" Shirley was flabbergasted at the presence of the slightest amount of alcohol.

Nina broke her usually silent nature and pointed out, "But we're on the Student Council. We really shouldn't."

"Aw, don't be such a stick in the mud." Rivalz teased the party poopers.

Lelouch smiled at the way Shirley was trying to wrestle the bottle of Champagne from Rivalz. Shirley then knocked Rivalz down and the cork popped of and went flying towards Kallen.

Kallen deflected the cork as it flew at her head. The Champagne then rained down on top of her head, coating her in the sweet liquid.

* * *

_Zero and Lotus_

Lelouch knocked on the bathroom door.

"It's Lelouch," he called through the door. "I brought you some clothes to change into."

"You can come in. I've already drawn the curtain," Kallen answered from behind the door.

Lelouch entered and the door closed behind him. He then walked over the bathroom counter. He set down his clothes on the counter. "I brought you some of mine since Milly and Shirley's were too large."

"Thanks," Kallen said from behind the curtain. "That was fast. You went all the way to the boy's dorm?"

"Actually, I live here." Lelouch recounted to her why he was living in the Student Council building. "My little sister would have it pretty hard living off in the dorms. The principal of the school lets us stay here as a favor."

Kallen went quiet for a brief moment. Her slender hand slipped out from behind the shower curtain and pointed to the pink pouch she always carried around with her. "Can you hand me that pouch over there?" she finally asked.

Lelouch grabbed the pink pouch and reached his arm behind the curtain and it was forcefully grabbed by Kallen's hand. Lelouch then reacted, quickly pushing the curtain aside, twirling his arm over his head, pulling Kallen's arm across her stomach, grabbing her other hand and crossing her arms over her body into a possition where her body was pinned against his so that she couldn't move.

"Very reckless Q-1, if I wasn't Zero you would have blown your act." Lelouch said in his commanding voice.

Kallen gasped "So it was you yesterday, that helped us defeat the Britannian forces and ordered that cease fire. How did you manage to pull that of anyway?" Kallen questioned suspiciously.

"I told Clovis to command a ceise fire at gun point. He really was an amazing actor, you could never tell he was being threatened while he was making the comand." Lelouch said calmly.

"How did you get past his guards then." Kallen demands, struggling to get out of Lelouch's strong grip.

"Tsk, tsk, Kallen a shin-obi never reveals his secrets." Lelouch said in joking tone.

"Shin-obi? You can't be a shin-obi your Britannian!" Kallen cried indignantly.

"I was trained by a shin-obi master after I saved her life during the war and she trained me and protects Nunnally in order to repay that dept." Lelouch said

"But you are a Britannian, why do you fight against Britannia?" Kallen asked

"You are Britannian too, yet you fight Britannia. I fail to see how it is strange that I fight to free Japan." Lelouch said indignatly.

Kallen was about to respond when she realized she was still naked."Let go of me you pervert!" Kallen demanded.

Lelouch blushed realizing just then that she did not have clothes on, quickly complied giving Kallen a large towel to cover herself up with.

"Sorry about that Kallen, I just reacted when you grabbed my hand. Even though I expected it, my first reflex was to immobilize you." Lelouch apologized.

"I want proof, I want proof that a student like you can take on Britannia. A single battle could be coincidence." Kallen said her face still red.

"You're only a student too," said Lelouch. "But, I see your point. I will show you our base of operations. I only ask that when I introduce my self to your group that you still refer to me as Zero and not mention that I am britannian."

"Why, won't everyone notice?" Kallen asked suspiciously.

"No, I am going to being wearing a costume. You and P-1 may be willing to follow a britannian but not everyone in your group would be willing to, especially P-5. He seems pretty..." Lelouch answered.

"Dumb." Kallen suplied.

"I was going to say dense, but yes he doesn't seem very bright." Lelouch said

"Fine, I won't reveal your identity, but I want to be informed about all of your plans." Kallen demanded. "Wait, you said 'our' who else is in on this?" Kallen said confused.

"You will meet them later when I show you our base. Until then why don't you finish your shower. We can talk after the council party." Lelouch said as he left the bathroom. Kallen then returned to the shower to finish cleaning off.

* * *

**Several minutes Later**

_Zero and Lotus and Gear and Innocents_

Kallen exited the bathroom dressed Lelouch's brown pants with brown his brown jacket on.

Once Kallen came out of the bathroom, she and Lelouch began to walk back towards the council ballroom.

"Kallen meet me out in front of the school, after your welcome party. I will show you to our base, and to meet everyone else." Lelouch said as they walked up to the ballroom door. Once he and Kallen opened the door, they were immediately assaulted by Shirley's voice.

"Lelouch, it's awful the viceroy has just been announced dead." Shirley said in a distraught voice.

Both Kallen and Lelouch turned to the television to see the broadcast playing.

* * *

**Government Bureau **

_Orange and The Pure and White Knight_

"Prince Clovis has been taken from us. He fought for peace and justice against all of the elevens. He died a martyr. We must all bury our sorrow and carry on his will." Anounced Jeremiah, with the Pure-bloods standing behind him.

"We interrupt this broadcast with breaking news" said the newscastor. "The man suspected as the murderer has been apprehended. According to this report the suspect is Honorary-Britannian Suzaku Kururugi. He has been arrested for murder."

* * *

Authors note

[Revised]

Alright after this chapter is the Suzaku rescue chapter and zero's official introductions.

After this updates will be slower inorder to increase chapter quality and length and to prevent plot holes.

Any questions about what happens in the story, review and I will answer your questions.

The last two chapters have been combined into one chapter, like they should have before. My goal is to have each future chapter have at least 6000 words.


	3. Rise of Nothing

Early Start: Rise of Nothing

Authors note

"_Thoughts_"

"Speech"

Action

**Time**

CUSTOMARY DISCLAIMER: I do not, nor have in any way, ever owned anything to do with the original anime or story which my fan fictions are based off of. These stories are written for the sole purpose of entertainment, and not meant to achieve any profit through selling it.

* * *

**Last Time**

**Government Bureau**

"Prince Clovis has been taken from us. He fought for peace and justice against all of the elevens. He died a martyr. We must all bury our sorrow and carry on his will." Anounced Jeremiah, with the Pure-bloods standing behind him.

"We interrupt this broadcast with breaking news" said the newscastor. "The man suspected as the murderer has been apprehended. According to this report the suspect is Honorary-Britannian Suzaku Kururugi. He has been arrested for murder."

* * *

**Now**

_Orange and the Pure_

Jeremiah was currently in a meeting with Villetta Nu and Kewell Soresi, the two highest ranking members of the Purebloods apart from himself. Yesterday, Kewell had devised a plan to use an Honorary Britannian as a scapegoat for Prince Clovis's murderer.

"Kewell, this idea of yours is excellent. However I have something I need to take care of in Clovis' administration before the new visceroy gets here, so I am putting you in charge of this whole deal with Kururugi." Jeremiah explained "So if this suceeds you will probably get a promotion and the Purist party will rise in status, but know that if it fails everything will go back to you in order to protect the purist party. Understand?"

"Yes, sir. Nothing is going to happen that will jeperdise this operation." Kewell said with certainty.

* * *

**Special Core**

_The Tinkerer_

"It looks like I am going to have to figure out how to get my hands on a better part now." Lloyd said slightly upset.

"Lloyd! That's not right!" Cecile exclaimed as she whacked Lloyd on the head "Suzaku's going to lose his life, and all you can think about is getting a new devicer!"

"There's no use complaining about it Cecile, Kururugi's fate is sealed."

"Lloyd!"

"Besides you saw how talented that terrorist was! That black knightmare, K-1 or something, that defeated Suzaku. He was definitely an ace level, him and that one Q-1 that managed to defeated so many Sutherlands in a Junkyard Glasgow. Either one would make a suitable pilot for the Lancelot." Lloyd shook his head.

"When you said Suzaku lost, you meant the Lancelot lost right?" Cecile questioned

"No, the person fighting Suzaku out thought Suzaku, and Suzaku was still injured from earlier." Lloyd said calmly.

"It is lucky that the building that landed on the Lancelot landed so that the Lancelot ended up being inside one of the building's rooms, so that it didn't get crushed." Cecile said.

"Yes, it does seem that Kururugi has the best of Luck. I wouldn't be surprised if he somehow gets out of this fiasco alive." Lloyd said, still annoyed that the Lancelot had almost been destroyed by a falling building.

"I certainly hope so." Cecile said

* * *

**Ashford Academy**

_Zero and Lotus and Gear_

Everyone in the room was shocked by the news. Kallen noticed that Nunnally was very upset when the news announced that Suzaku was the murderer. Kallen then walked up to Nunnally knelt down and grasped the younger girl's hand.

"You seem sad Nunnally, Do you know him?" Kallen wispered

Nunnally answered Kallen in an upset voice. "Yes, he was so kind to me when we were younger."

"I hope he gets acquitted then." Kallen said to comfort Nunnally.

"He will, I will make sure of it." Nunnally murmured.

"Well, that kills the mood of the party." Lelouch said "Why don't I drop Kallen off at her house while you guys clean up here." Lelouch offered.

"Nice try buddy, but you just want to get out of work and spend more time with your girlfr, I mean Kallen." said Rivalz nervously.

"Sure Lelouch, go spend time with your girlfriend." Milly said in a teasing voice

"He/She is not my girlfriend/boyfriend!" Lelouch and Kallen said in unison.

"What ever you say Lelouch, she is the only girl other than Nunnally that you really have payed any attention since I have known you." Milly said.

"Just ignore her, Kallen. Milly is always looking for something to tease me on. Do you mind if I take you back to your house tonight." Lelouch said

_"This must be so he can talk to me alone_" Kallen thought.

"Sure, Lelouch." Kallen responded in her fake meek voice.

"Alright I will take you on my motercycle." Lelouch said as they walked out of the door.

* * *

_Zero and Lotus and Tempest_

Lelouch and Kallen walked out of the ballroom and started to walk down the halls toward the Library. Kallen then asked Lelouch "Where are we going."

"I promised to show you our base, so I will show you our base and explain then I will drive you home on my motorcycle." Lelouch said as they walked into the school library.

"Okay, your base is the Library?" Kallen asked skeptically as Lelouch walked up to a bookcase in the back of the Library.

"Don't be ridiculous." Lelouch said pulling out an orange book and then saying "Lelouch and Visitor." Once Lelouch put the orange book back in place, the bookcase lowered into the floor and two elevator doors opened. Lelouch then grabbed Kallen's hand and gently pulled her into the elevator. The doors then closed and the elevator began to go down.

"How did you put all this in, Lelouch?" Kallen asked in slight awe.

"The elevator shaft was already here, we just put in the elevator, the moving bookcase and some walls blocking of this section of the underground tunnels." Lelouch said nonchalantly as they both walked out of the elevator.

"Where did you get the money for all of this?" Kallen asked.

"I am sure that you have heard about my gambling habits. My gambling funds all of this." Lelouch said as he gestured to the underground base.

"That you, Lelouch?" a voice in the other room asked. "Has it been twenty four hours already." Rai said as he walked out of the room with all of the technology in it.

"Please tell me you have slept Rai." Lelouch said.

"I have slept, Lelouch. I am not four." Rai said in an annoyed voice.

"Any way Rai, this is Kallen she was the one who was piloting the Glasgow that I told you about." Lelouch explained ignoring Rai's outburst. "Kallen, this is Rai he is the one who dropped off the Arashi for me so that we could defeat that white unit."

"Lancelot." Rai said

"What?" Lelouch and Kallen asked.

"The white machine is called the Lancelot, created by the special core Camelot." Rai explained. "I was able to get that and the data for the MVS and float system data before I was locked out."

"Wait locked out of what." Kallen asked.

"The government data base. It turns out Clovis overestimated his technicians or underestimated Camelot's security since Camelot is funded by Prince schneizel." Rai said. "But with the data we got and the data from Project-R Nunnally and I can finish tuning the Arashi and the Icarus into becoming 7th generation knightmares. Soon we might be able to make them fly." Rai said in an excited tone.

"Alright Rai let's go to the meeting room so we can bring Kallen up to speed before Nunnally brings C.C. here." Lelouch said grabbing Kallen's hand and leading her to the conference room.

Once in the conference room, Lelouch lead Kallen over to a chair next to the head of the table and offered her the chair.

"Thank you, Lelouch but I am perfectly capable of doing it myself." Kallen said irritably "I am not an invalid like I pretend to be in school."

"I am well aware of this Kallen, however I was taught to pull out chairs when women sit down. If you really want me to I can stop." Lelouch said

"No it is fine, I just hate being treated as weak." Kallen explained blushing lightly.

"Would you two hurry up, we need to get started." Rai said impatiently.

"Fine!" Lelouch and Kallen said while they both sat down.

"Alright, Kallen why don't you ask any questions after Rai describes our current operation before you ask any questions." Lelouch said

"Alright." Kallen replied

"Okay, our basic operations are as follows. Lelouch makes money through gambling and keeps up with his training and Nunnally and I design our technology in preparation for our fight with Britannia." Rai said

"...that's it?" questioned Kallen.

"We were basically in the preparation stage of our plan. Now though with your group Kallen, we are going to actually start to attack." Rai said bluntly.

"Rai, she needs more details than that." Lelouch exasperatedly explained.

"Then she can ask. I can't explain without going into really technical terms and then neither of you would fully understand what I was saying." Rai said

"Fine. Ask any questions now, Kallen." Lelouch said.

"Alright, first who else is in on this?" Kallen asked

"Other than us right here, there is Nunnally and Sayoko. We also plan on making C.C. a member if she proves to be cooperative. We have a field agent to but I can't tell you his name until his infultration mission is over." Lelouch explained.

"Who are Sayoko and C.C." Kallen asked.

"Sayoko is my shin-obi sensei and Nunnally's bodyguard/maid. And C.C. is ..." Lelouch started to answer when a ding sound was heard.

"Seams like the are already here. Kallen you can meet everyone else now." Lelouch said as Sayoko pushed Nunnally's wheel chair up to the table and took a seat next to Nunnally. C.C. then walked in with her prisoner suit on.

* * *

**Earlier**

_Gear and Ninja and White Witch and Inoccents_

"Ah there our vice-president goes. Doing anything to get out of work." Milly sighed

Shirley was positively green. Chewing the inside of her cheek she wondered. Who the hell was Kallen to Lelouch? And why did Lelouch seem so interested in her?

"MOU," shouted Shirley, throwing the cloth in her hand into the air.

"Cleaning getting to you Shirley?" asked Milly playfully and then she looked at the clock, "Well let's just endure on for another half hour and then we are done."

"Or could you be jealous of Kallen?" said Milly sighing, "Young love is always so difficult."

"W-what, no, no, I don't, that is not it." stuttered Shirley blushing.

"What's going on?" asked Nina lost at what was happening.

"Don't worry about it Shirley," Nunnally placieatingly "I am sure he is just trying to get out of work."

But all Shirley did was worry more. "Why is he so interested in her anyway? He never lets anyone ride on his motercycle!"

"So young, so suspicious." Milly teased as Sayoko walked into the ballroom.

"Nunnally it is time for bed." Sayoko said.

"Alright, Sayoko. Goodnight everyone." Nunnally said with a kind smile.

"Goodnight, Nunna." Everyone said as Sayoko pushed Nunnally out of the ballroom.

"Sayoko sempai can you take me to brother's room there is someone we need to pick up for the meeting." Nunnally said once they were out of earshot of the ballroom.

"Alright Nunnally" Sayoko as she quickly pushed Nunnally towards Lelouch's room.

Once they got there, they found C.C. sitting on Lelouch's bed eating a pizza with three empty boxes on the floor.

"What is it Nunnally?" C.C. asked

"It is time for the meeting to begin. You don't have to come to any other meeting after this, but this one is mandatory." Nunnally said in a stern voice.

"So bossy, but I guess I don't have anything better to do." C.C. said getting up and putting on her prisoner suit.

"Alright, Sayoko can you take us to the Library." Nunnally asked

"Yes ma'am." Sayoko said as the all began to move towards the Library.

* * *

**Now**

_Zero and Lotus and Tempest and Gear and Ninja and White Witch_

Once everyone was seated, Lelouch said "Alright, Lets bring up the first order of business. We have two new members here today. Why don't our new members introduce them. Kallen why don't you go first?"

"Okay" Kallen said standing up "My name is Kallen Kōzuki, I am half britannian and half japanese. In school I go by my britannian name Kallen Stadtfeld. I am a knightmare pilot in a resistance cell." Kallen said and then sat back down.

"Thank you Kallen. C.C. why don't you go next." Lelouch said

"My name is C.C." C.C. said curtly.

"...Well that was very imformative C.C." Lelouch said sarcasticly. "Well, since C.C. is being very unhelpful, I open the floor to questions for our members before we go on to the next stage." Lelouch asked

"Wait, who is C.C.?" demanded Kallen.

"That is the next topic of discution, Kallen. If there are no other questions, I will begin the discussion." Lelouch answered

"No, other questions for now." Kallen said slightly embarrassed.

"Alright. Now while Rivalz and I were going home, a large truck swerved off the road behind us and crashed into a building. I then went to check if the people inside were ok. When I couldn't get in the front, I climbed up the ladder up to the back to see if I could get in there. C.C. you contacted me telepathically at that time. Later you gave me a special power. Are there any other powers that you have, C.C.?" Lelouch explained

"I don't have to tell you that. Are you not happy with the power I gave you." C.C. questioned

"I do like it, however I need to know more about it. Such as how many others are immortal like you, who else have you given this power to that is still alive, are any people immune to this power, can this power backfire, and can all immortals give this power to people?" Lelouch questioned with everyone else in the room looking slightly confused.

"In order of your questions. I don't know, one person, immortals are immune to this power, the power goes out of control with time and you will not be able to deactivate it, and every immortal can give this power. But don't worry about it, every power is based on the individual. I don't even know what your power is." C.C. answered leaving everyone in the room more confused.

"Alright, both of you need to explain exactly going on." Kallen shouted, frustrated at being left out.

"Sorry, forgot I have not told any of you this. C.C. is immortal and she gave me a power that allows me to command people to do anything. How ever I found out that I could only use it once per person when I tried using it on Clovis' advisors as I was leaving his transport, so I was forced to kill them." Lelouch explained.

"What do you mean immortal?" Kallen asked.

"She was shot in the head and then a few minutes later she was fine." Lelouch said in a calm voice.

"How do we know that you haven't used your power on us?" Kallen asked angrily.

"I can only give one command per person, so each of you can pick a command or I can give you the command to be immune to this power." Lelouch said.

"Geass, the power is called Geass" C.C. said.

"Well then I want you to make us all immune to Geass then Lelouch" Nunnally said.

"Does everyone agree?" Lelouch asked. Everyone nodded.

"Alright then, I Lelouch vi Britannia, command all of you be immune to Geass!" Lelouch ordered.

"Yes, your majesty." Everyone except Nunnally and C.C. said

"Now for myself. Does anyone have a mirror?" Lelouch asked once everyone came out of their daze.

"I do, here Lelouch." Kallen said as she took her compact mirror out and handed it to Lelouch.

"Thanks Kallen." Lelouch said making Kallen blush slightly.

"Now, I command you, be immune to Geass!" Lelouch said as he looked into the compact mirror.

While Lelouch was in a daze Nunnally began to speak. "Kallen, both C.C. and I can attest to Lelouch not using his Geass on you for anything other than to make you immune to it."

"Alright I believe you, Nunnally." Kallen said.

"Okay that was disorienting." Lelouch said "The next order of business is the rescue of Suzaku Kururugi. Kallen can you get in contact with your resistance group from here?"

"Yes, why." Kallen asked

"Because I want you to tell them tomorrow that Zero contacted you and told you to go to the observation deck of Tokyo Tower at 1600 hours today and to come alone." Lelouch explained.

"But don't you want to meet with them, not me?" Kallen asked

"Yes, but they won't let you go alone so they will follow you there and will be less suspicious if they think I am expecting less people to come."

"Now come one it is getting late I need to sleep from staying up the last twenty eight hours and everyone else should go to sleep anyway. Lelouch, you should take Kallen home now. Sayoko, you should put Nunnally to bed and C.C. can sleep in the second bedroom down here." Rai said yawning.

"Rai, you said you slept." Lelouch said in a criticizing tone of voice.

"I have slept, this week." Rai responded with a smart ass remark.

"Never mind, I am going to take Kallen home now. We will discuss your sleeping habits later." Lelouch said as he guided Kallen to other elevator door.

"By we will talk later everyone." Kallen called from the elevator before it closed.

* * *

_Zero and Lotus_

Lelouch lead out of the elevator that let them of in the underground tunnels and lead Kallen over to the black motorcycle that was parked next to the elevator. "Hop on Kallen." Lelouch offered as he held out a helmet to her. She smiled as she took the helmet. "Thank you, Lelouch." Taking the hard plastic helmet she put it on and sat behind him.

Wrapping her arms around his torso, she leaned into his back.

"HANG ON!" Lelouch yelled as he started the engine and took off.

Kallen let out a loud laugh as he sped out of the school grounds and on to the night streets. They seemed to fly across the pavement and Kallen felt an exhilarating chill go down her spine. Even piloting a knightmare wasn't as amazing as the feeling of gliding across the ground at break neck speeds.

All to soon, Lelouch pulled to a stop in front of Kallen's house.

"Alright Kallen, I will see you tomorrow." Lelouch said as he put Kallen's helmet away.

Kallen pulled Lelouch into a hug. "Thank you Lelouch for saving my life and being so nice to me." Kallen said releasing the hug with her face slightly red.

"No problem, Kallen. Are you sure that you are fine though?" Lelouch said with genuine worry, placing the back of his palm on her forehead. "Your face is red again."

Kallen once again shook his hand off of her. "I'm fine Lelouch, but thanks for the concern." Kallen said "Goodnight Lelouch." Kallen said as she went inside.

Lelouch then got on his motorcycle and drove back to Ashford Academy.

* * *

**The Next Day**

_Lotus and The Teacher_

Kallen smiled happily as she stood on the landing of the stairwell the next day. _With Lelouch's help, we can actually manage to fight Britannia. Now all thats left to do is convince the others_ Kallen thought smiling at the thought when her phone rang; she opened it up and the Caller ID told her it was Ohgi.

"Hello?" she asked

"Hi Kallen." and after a pause Ohgi asked "How did your first day back at school go?"

"Surprisingly well, Zero contacted me; you know the one from Shinjuku." Kallen answered.

"What!?" exclaimed Ohgi, "Well what did he say?"

"Zero told me to meet him at 1600 hours the day after tomorrow at the observation deck of Tokyo Tower and to come alone." Kallen replied.

"You are not going alone Kallen." Ohgi insisted on the other end of the line.

* * *

**Tokyo Settlement**

_Zero and Lotus and The Teacher and The Idiot_

Kallen had just gotten on the Rail Line to go to the Tokyo Tower, just like Lelouch had told her to do yesterday. The red-haired half-Britannian took a seat away from as many fellow passengers as possible.

"Next stop, Tokyo Tower," the automated voice signaled the desired location.

Kallen stood up from her seat and looked into the train car behind the one she was on.

Good, she thought as her gaze found who she was looking for. Ohgi didn't come alone. She saw a few familiar faces surrounding the resistance group's leader.

She felt Ohgi's group following her from a distance as she stepped onto the Tokyo Tower platform. The feeling of being watched by her fellow fighters stayed with her as the entrance doors to the Tokyo Tower slid open with a hiss.

Kallen passed the reception desk and walked into the elevator. Kallen looked behind her after she'd pressed the button that represented going up in the elevator. She confirmed that Ohgi and his group were still following her, and then she entered the elevator and pressed the button that would take her to the observation level. The elevator's doors shut with a soft hiss and the hunk of metal lurched as it was pulled upwards by the pulley system it used.

The elevator came to a halt with another lurch, and the doors parted as they opened automatically.

Kallen grimaced, the Britannian propaganda emanating from the speakers scattered around the museum once known as the Tokyo Tower was irritating and demeaning; still it was small price to pay for getting Lelouch to lead them as Zero. Naturally, she hadn't come alone, when she told Ohgi that Zero contacted her to meet, Ohgi and the others refused to let her meet him on her own and ended up tailing her at a distance.

Several minutes after she arrived, Kallen heard a few pings over the Tower's P.A. system. "Paging a Ms. Kallen Stadtfelt of Ashford Academy," the voice rang throughout the Tokyo Tower. "One of your personal effects has been turned in at the kiosk on the observation level." Kallen went down to the kiosk and picked up the phone Lelouch had dropped off.

Kallen then looked at the phone only to be a little suprised when the phone rang. She looked at the caller I.D. it said Zero. _"Must be Lelouch"_ Kallen thought. She then answered the phone "Hello?"

"Kallen, board the outbound train on loop line five. Bring your friends." Lelouch then hung up on her. Kallen and the others did as the Lelouch said and got on the train. It wasn't long before the phone rang again. She picked it up "Ok what now?"

"Face forward and look to your right what do you see?"

The Britannian city, it was stolen away from us and built on our sacrifice." She answered.

"And on the left?"

"I see our city. Remnants of a the old Tokyo that remain after the Britannians sucked it dry."

"Good answer. Now make your way to the front of the train."

Kallen and the others did as the voice said and made their way to the front car of the train. Kallen was the only one who noticed that the rest of the passengers seemed to be in some kind of a daze. '_Geass'_ she thought. She and her confederates finally made it to their destination when the door slid open they found a cloaked figure standing with his back to them.

"Was it you on the phone?" Kallen asked despite the fact that she knew the answer was yes.

"Do you think it's a trap?" one of her friends whispered.

"Well was that you in Shinjuku?" Kallen asked acting irritated that he was ignoring her. "Was the cease fire your doing?"

"Hey we're talking to you." Ohgi said.

The figure finally turned around as the train entered a dark tunnel. "What do you think of my tour of the settlement?" Lelouch asked of them. it was then that Kallen realized the reason for the delay. _'For a shinobi, you really are fond of theatrics, aren't you Lelouch?'_

"Your tour?" Tamaki asked "come on it couldn't have been this joker."

Inwardly Kallen snickered _'Tamaki the only joker around here is you._'

"I wanted you to fully grasp the two, the settlement and the ghetto." Zero said spreading his arms.

Ohgi stepped forward "Yeah we already know there's a difference between us and Britannians, that's why we resist them." Ohgi said.

"You're wrong. Britannia will not fall to terrorism." Zero replied

"Fall?" Ohgi asked.

"It is no better than a childish nuisance." Zero said

"What was that? You calling us a bunch of kids?" Tamaki yelled

"You should know your enemy it is not people but Britannia it's self. It is a war you must wage but not against the innocent. Take up your swords and fight for justice!" Zero said

"That's easy enough for you to say, hiding behind that mask. Why don't you show us we can trust you, show us your face!" Tamaki yelled

"Very well, I show you. But instead of my face, how about I show you my power." Zero said "I will delever the imposible to you, then I will have your trust."

Kallen smiled "_Lelouch, you really are a convincing actor"_

* * *

**Japanese Liberation Front Headquarters.**

_Miracle Man_

"He killed the Britannian Prince! Kururugi Suzaku should be treated as a hero!"

"But he's an honorary Britannian!"

"Isn't he the son of the late Prime Minister Kururugi?"

"You mean the man who gave up Japan! The people don't know that about him!"

The argument over between General Katase Tatewaki and Lieutenant Colonel Kusakabe Josui over whether to aid Kururugi Suzaku, had been going back and forth for more than an hour now, with many of the JLF members in the room moving to stand behind the man they believed to be right. The only one who had not taken a side was Lieutenant Colonel Tohdoh Kyoshirou, also known as Kiseki no Tohdoh.

"The Shinjuku incident was the work of Kozuki's group, wasn't it?" Katase asked.

"Yes, General." Kusakabe confirmed. "They're currently led by a man named Ohgi."

"Your thoughts, Tohdoh?" Katase asked, turning to face the highly decorated war hero who was kneeling at the front of the room, his personal katana lying in front of him.

Tohdoh remained silent, contemplating the situation carefully. He had to think of the situation as a member of the JLF and not as Kururugi Suzaku's former instructor. For a crime as severe as Kururugi was being charged with, the Britannian security around the prisoner transport would be quite high. His choice was clear. "We have no duty to join him in a public execution."

"Such cowardice!" Kusakabe exclaimed. "Are you really the one they call Kiseki no Tohdoh?"

"You shouldn't confuse a miracle with foolishness!" Tohdoh countered. "Our duty is towards the liberation of Japan as a whole. Kururugi Suzaku made his choice to join the Britannian military. Let him accept the consequences of his actions."

* * *

**Junkyard**

_Zero and Lotus and The Teacher_

"I see just you two then." Zero said, in an amused tone.

Ohgi looked embarrassed, "I'm sorry, we just need a little more time. If more people understoo-"

"No, the two of you will do just fine." Zero interrupted.

It just took Ohgi a second but he reacted with surprise "That's mad! There will be too many of them!"

"With your help clearing the task at hand will be child's play. I need this by tomorrow, all that matters is the exterior." Zero said, throwing a folded note towards Kallen who deftly caught it.

* * *

**Tokyo Settlement**

_Zero and Lotus and White Knight and The Pure_

Crowds of people, all loyal Britannians, lined the street that Suzaku Kururugi would be paraded along to the courthouse where he would be tried for his various 'Crimes' including the murder of Prince Clovis la Britannia. The crowds demanded the death of the son of Genbu. They would have stormed the armored float upon which the prisoner was being transported to lynch him themselves if not for the presence of the Sutherlands standing guard. They formed a diamond formation around the platform. The Cockpit of the Lead Sutherland was open revealing Lord Kewell.

"_Lord Kewell, there is a vehicle approaching the route._" A solider reported over the radio as the transport and Knightmares were neared the overpass. "_We let it through as you instructed, but..._"

"Do you believe it to be a terrorist vehicle?" Kewell asked.

"_Well sir, its Prince Clovis's personal car._"

"The prince's car? Well looks like we have a comedian on our hands. Let them through." He said as he brought the procession to a complete halt.

"_Yes Sir._"

Kewell stopped the transport and waited for the fools to appear.

'_This isn't going to work. Lelouch is going to get us killed.'_ Kallen thought frantically, as she slowly drove the car up the street towards the waiting knightmares.

Kewell easily spotted the personal car of Prince Clovis making its way towards them from the opposite end of the street, and stopped just in front of their position. He hadn't been told what had actually happened to the car after the viceroy's murder, but he assumed it had simply been scrapped, as the prince's personal transport was just that. Meant for Prince Clovis's transportation _only._

"How dare you desecrate his Highness' car. I order you to come out at once."

As if those words were a cue, flames burst into existence at the bottom of the Britannian flag displayed on the car and quickly consumed the symbol, revealing the masked form of Lelouch clothed in black.

"I am Zero." He stated imperiously, the eyes of the entire world now upon him.

After a moment of stunned silence, Kewell shook himself out of his stupor and smirked. "Well Zero, whatever it is you have planned it ends here!" He said as he fired his pistol into the air. Upon his signal four additional Purist Sutherlands dropped from the aerial transports and surrounded the faux royal transport, antiarmor rifles trained on the masked individual in the center.

'Zero' himself made no move showing no sign of surprise, even as Kallen who also expected it jumped inside the vehicle.

"Now then," Kewell began, confident that he was still in control of the situation, "why don't you remove that mask so we can see your face."

Zero moved his gloved hand to the faceplate of his mask, as if planning to remove it, then suddenly he raised it into the air and snapping his fingers in the process. Reacting to the cue Kallen pulled the lever inside the cabin and the walls of the car fell away revealing an ominous metal sphere.

"What?" Gasped Kewell and the other Purists. The civilians didn't know what it was, but that was the container of poison gas the military had been ordered to find several days ago. The day Clovis was killed.

Behind his mask Zero smirked. '_That's right Kewell. You never saw the contents of this container, so you think it's full of poison gas._'

Unnoticed by everyone, since their focus was on Zero and the capsule, Suzaku tried to tell the people that it was a fake but the collar around his neck shocked him into submission.

'_Damn it._' The Kewell thought. '_He's taken every Britannian here hostage without them even even knowing it._' With a feeling of powerlessness washing over him as realized he had lost control of the situation to this terrorist, Kewell did the only thing he could and pointed his pistol at Zero's heart.

"You intend to shoot me? I think you know the consequences should you miss." Zero taunted.

Kewell cursed since as he knew Zero was right. If he missed, and accidently hit the canister, he would be the one responsible for who knew how many Britannian deaths. That would be the end of the Purist party. He reluctantly lowered the gun and motioned for the knightmares to do so as well. "Very well. What is it you want?"

"I wish to trade," Zero stated. "This capsule for Suzaku Kururugi."

"Impossible!" Kewell declared. "This man commited high treason for killing Prince Clovis! I simply will not hand him over to anyone!"

"You are wrong Kewell. Kururugi is not Clovis' murderer. The man who truly killed Clovis," Zero turned his head slightly so his face pointed directly into the portable news camera of the blond man that had run out onto the road, "was myself!"

Around the world the people who chose to watch the trial, from the Japanese to members of the Britannian Royal family including a princess in the soon to be established Area 18 gasped in shock as this masked man who called himself Zero proclaimed he was the actual murderer of Prince Clovis.

Zero wasn't finished with his declaration. "In exchange for a single Eleven you can save the lives of hundreds of Britannians. Not a bad deal I say."

Kewell had completely lost control of the situation. Never had he suspected that someone would come out and confess to a crime that was guaranteed execution. But since this 'Zero' had confessed then there was no need for a trial. "Why bother with this trade when I can execute you where you stand?" He asked as he once again raised his gun.

"Are you sure you want to do that?" Asked Zero. "If you do then the entire world will know the truth about, Code-R." That statement was enough to throw the Britannians into confusion about what 'Code-R' could be. Taking advantage of the confusion Zero tapped his heel twice on the roof of the cab, signaling Kallen to move the vehicle forward. Once the gap to the float had shrunk by several meters Lelouch initiated the critical part of his plan. "If I die it will go public. Now if you want Clovis' secret kept then I suggest that," here a small panel in his mask over his left eye moved allowing Lelouch to make direct eye contact with Kewell, "You release Suzaku Kururugi and do everything in your power to let us go!"

The effect was instantaneous. Kewell's face went blank and his eyes became rimmed with red light. "Right, understood. You there, release the prisoner!"

"Lord Kewell, what are you doing?" Viletta asked

"Hand him over, now!" Kewell yelled

"What are thinking, you can't do this!" Viletta said

"Viletta, this is an order! Let Kururugi and Zero go!"

The crowd watched as the soldiers guarding Kururugi released the cuffs on his arms and let him down from the armored transport. Amongst the crowds' loud protests, he walked over to Zero and Kallen.

"Now, I bid you a due." Zero yelled. Zero then raised a remote trigger and pressed the button. The capsule let out a cloud of smoke and the the crowd broke out into a panic and ran screaming.

"Cowardly Eleven!" Villetta shouted as she prepared to fire. Kewell quickly knocked her rifle away.

"Kewell, what on Earth are you doing?" Viletta demanded

"You heard me, stand down now!" Kewell said "All forces, for the last time, do everything in your power to let Zero and Kururugi get away! Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, my lord!" a few soldier shouted back, the rest unable to believe what had just happened. Soon, the train came alive and rolled away and escaped. Zero had just pulled off his first miracle.

* * *

**Abandoned Theater**

_Zero and White Knight and Lotus_

Zero was standing in a ruined theater with Suzaku in front of him and Kallen behind the door so that she could watch Suzaku to prevent him from trying anything.

"So, are you really the one who killed Clovis?" Suzaku asked Zero. "Why!?"

"This is war_"_ Zero replied. _"_Why wouldn't I kill the enemy commander"

"What about the poison gas?" Suzaku demanded

"It was a bluff._"_ Zero answered. "The result? Not a single life was lost this night._"_

"The result?" Suzaku asked, incredulous. "That's all that matters to you, isn't it?"

"Come join me._"_ Zero offered, missing what Suzaku was saying entirely. "The Britannia you serve is but a useless dominion._"_

"That may be true, but…" Suzaku said as he glared at Zero. "But this nation can be changed for the better! And from within!"

'_From within?'_ Lelouch asked himself silently.

"Anything gained through contemptible means isn't worth anything." Suzaku added, turning to walk away.

"Where do you think you are going?_"_ Lelouch asked.

"My court martial begins in an hour." Suzaku replied, walking away.

"ARE YOU INSANE!?_"_ Lelouch shouted from behind the mask. "The only reason they're giving you a trial is to find you GUILTY! THE JUDGE, THE PROSECUTION AND DEFENCE!"

"Perhaps, but rules are rules." Suzaku said. "And if I don't go, they'll start cracking down on Elevens… and Honorary Britannians…"

"BUT YOU'LL DIE!" Lelouch yelled.

"I don't mind." Suzaku said not stopping.

"DON'T BE A FOOL!" Lelouch yelled out.

"An old friend of mine used to call me that all the time." Suzaku replied.

Lelouch stood calmly as Suzaku continued to walk away. "It's my weakness I guess." Suzaku continued, turning to face Zero. "I'd try to bring you in, but you'd just end up killing me. And if I'm going to die, it's going to be in the service of the people." Suzaku turned away and began to leave again. "Even so, I thank you for saving me."

"You_… _IDEALISTIC FOOL_…"_ Lelouch yelled after Suzaku. Lelouch bowed his head in despair at the display of idiocy by his old friend. Kallen walked up to Lelouch and put her hand on Lelouch's shoulder.

"I believe what we are doing is right, Lelouch." Kallen said comfortingly.

"Thank you Kallen, I needed that. You are right. This country needs to be overturned. Suzaku won't be able to change Britannia from the inside. It will change him." Lelouch said with finality.

* * *

Authors note

[Revised]

Alright I am surprised that no one though that I killed Suzaku off in the first chapter. I left it that way to create tension since I knew I was updating soon and would make sure everyone knew that Suzaku was alive. Or did people know since I didn't explicitly kill him that he was alive?

This will be the last update in a while. finals are coming up and I have a big lit project due.


	4. Enter the Princess

Early Start: Enter the Princesses

"_Thoughts_"

"Speech"

Action

**Time**

CUSTOMARY DISCLAIMER: I do not, nor have in any way, ever owned anything to do with the original anime or story which my fan fictions are based off of. These stories are written for the sole purpose of entertainment, and not meant to achieve any profit through selling it.

* * *

**Last Time**

"You_… _IDEALISTIC FOOL_…"_ Lelouch yelled after Suzaku. Lelouch bowed his head in despair at the display of idiocy by his old friend. Kallen walked up to Lelouch and put her hand on Lelouch's shoulder.

"I believe what we are doing is right, Lelouch." Kallen said comfortingly.

"Thank you Kallen, I needed that. You are right. This country needs to be overturned. Suzaku won't be able to change Britannia from the inside. It will change him." Lelouch said with finality.

* * *

**Now**

**Middle East**

_Battle Queen_

"Another Victory. Area 18 has been established." Cornelia said from within the flames of the destroyed enemy knightmares.

"My lady, about our next course of action?" Dalton asked

"Sorry to have you clean up after my foolish younger brother." Cornelia said

"Don't apologize my lady. We live to serve and our place is with you." Dalton said

"Do you think area 11 needs our usually treatment?" Cornelia asked

"Yes, my lady." Dalton replied. Cornelia smirked _I will drive you out into the open, Zero. Clovis will be avenged!_

* * *

**Ashford Academy**

_Zero and Lotus_

Lelouch and Kallen got off of his black motorcycle as they got back from rescuing Suzaku Kururugi from the Britannian Military for the murder of Prince Clovis. Of course, Lelouch had changed out of his Zero costume and Kallen had changed out of her chauffeur outfit to avoid suspicion from the millitary. From the outside they looked just like a couple of friends going for a joyride. Lelouch's plan had worked perfectly and Suzaku had been rescued by only three people, performing a miracle for the japanese populous. Unfortunately, that miracle had been partly ruined because of one unforeseen complication.

'That complete idiot' Lelouch thought. The rescue of Suzaku was to show everyone, Britannian and Eleven, that Zero wasn't just another terrorist. He could get things done and in big ways. Shinjuku had provided an example, but Suzaku's rescue was supposed to be the finishing touch.

Of course, Lelouch had planned for Suzaku to be so grateful that he'd join in his rebellion. Despite being an Honorary Britannian, Suzaku Kururugi was looked up to by many of the japanese simply because his father was Genbu Kururugi, the last Prime Minister of Japan. If Suzaku supported Zero, then the japanese would be behind him as well.

"Lelouch?" Kallen asked from her place on the back of the motercycle. "Will this effect your plan or did you expect Suzaku to be such an idiot?" Kallen finished asking angrily.

"I am glad you have such faith in my planing ability, but I had forgotten how stubborn and idealistic Suzaku can be. I expected him to have out grown that from being in the military but it seems he is still naïve. It would have been better if he was to join us, but it is not an overcome able loss." Lelouch said with a slight bitter tone to Kallen as they walked down the underground tunnel and got in the elevator to Rai's hidden lab.

"Lelouch, are you ok?" Kallen asked, concerned for her new leader.

"I am fine, but Suzaku's words really got on my nerves." Lelouch said as they got of of the elevator. "Even if he could enact change from within Britannia, britannian politics would ensure that he would still have to get his hands dirty."

"Right, he is just being stubborn. I am sure that you will be able to convince him that he is wrong eventually." Kallen said.

"I hope so Kallen." Lelouch said as they walked into Rai's lab.

"You are back, so I assume that the operation was a success." Rai said with out turning around.

"Yes and thanks for making the costume on such short notice." Lelouch said to Rai.

"Yeah that is one of the pressure suits that Nunnally and I made you, but the cape is fireproof and bulletproof against small weapons. Kallen I am making a pressure suit for you that will be your uniform. What color and design do you want." Rai said as he pulled up various images.

"Hm, that one and in dark red." Kallen said pointing to one of the designs. (Kallen's pilot suit with a dark red cape.)

"Alright, I will get on making that." Rai said sliding in his chair to another moniter in the room.

"I am supprised Nunnally let you put capes on either of our costumes. I remember her being very opposed to the idea of capes on the costumes." Lelouch said

"Well, she eventually agreed that you two should have one for dramatic effect and since they are bullet proof they will help keep you alive." Rai said sheepishly.

"Alright don't stay up too late Rai. I am going to walk Kallen over to the girls' dorms." Lelouch said after he put the Zero costume on the table for Rai.

Lelouch and Kallen then walked over to the other elevator and got onto it. The elevator then went up to the Library and they both got off of it. As the bookshelf rose back up to cover the elevator Kallen decided to break the akward silence.

"So Lelouch what are we going to do now?" Kallen asked as they walked to the girls' dorms.

"For now nothing. With a new Viceroy coming today we should lay low and wait for an opportunity to present itself." Lelouch said as they finally got to the girls' dorms. "Alright Kallen, I will see you tommorow."

"Okay, bye Lelouch." Kallen said as she walked into the girls' dorms. Lelouch stood outside the dorms for a moment before turning around and walking back towards his room.

Neither of them noticed that one of the lights in the rooms was on.

"Lulu?" Shirley said heartbrokenly.

* * *

**Tokyo Settlement**

_White Knight and The Princess_

"Case Number 107; Private Suzaku Kururugi, Area Eleven Military Forces. In the murder of his highness, Prince Clovis, you are no longer a suspect and are hereby set free due to lack of evidence."

The judge banged his gavel and that was it. The courtroom, which was mostly empty except for the judge, a couple of security officers, and a confused Honorary Britannian was quickly emptied. After standing frozen for a few seconds after the judge's ruling, one of the officers physically removed Suzaku from the courtroom.

"What happened?" he asked himself out loud. His court martial had been scheduled for that morning, but when he arrived, neither his defense lawyer, not that he had one, nor the prosecution was there. Instead, the judge just called his case number and it was over.

While he was pleased about not being found guilty or executed for a crime he didn't commit, Suzaku was left wondering about the Britannian court system. Just how was it able to do that. He knew that the Purebloods had focused a lot of time and money into his trial to find him guilty but now, to just let him go. Someone high up must have done something, but who, and why?

"Out of the way please!" a voice shouted.

It took Suzaku about a second to realize that the voice came from a girl above him, and even less time to see that she was falling from a good height. Quickly dropping his bag, Suzaku got into position to catch her before she hit the ground and injured herself.

"Look out below!" the girl shouted just before she landed safely in Suzaku's arms. She was very light so it wasn't too hard for Suzaku to catch her. As soon as he was sure she was safe, he carefully let her down.

"Are you alright?" he asked, while also getting a better look at her. She had long, bright pink hair and very beautiful violet eyes. _'Those eyes, why do I feel like I've seen her before?'_

"I'm sorry" the girl said hurriedly, "I wasn't aware anyone was down here until I had leaped!"

"Well, don't worry. I wasn't expecting a girl to come falling out of the sky and into my arms anyway."

But the girl wasn't listening.

"Oh my." She muttered; one look at his face and she knew exactly who he was. _'He's the one who was accused of murdering my brother!'_ Of all the people to be caught by, she was caught by Suzaku Kururugi.

"Huh, is something wrong?" Suzaku asked. If the girl was injured he needed to get her to a doctor right away, otherwise he might be charged with assault next.

'_This may be exactly what I need'_ the Third Princess thought.

"Yes, there is something wrong. The truth is, bad guys are chasing me, so considering the circumstances, could you help me please?"

Suzaku looked up to where the girl had jumped from and saw an open window with one of the curtains hanging from it like a rope. Something seemed off about the girl's story but he wasn't about to refuse her. She was a Britannian citizen after all and he was just an Honorary Britannian. That, and she had such a cute face when she was pleading with him he couldn't say no.

The unusual pair quickly walked to a nearby plaza. Suzaku kept looking over his shoulder, watching for whoever was chasing the girl while she just looked around in wonder. Although his vision wasn't the best because of the sunglasses he was wearing as a disguise, so far no one appeared to be following them, discreetly or not.

"We haven't introduced ourselves, have we?" the girl asked as she turned back to Suzaku. "My name is…" she paused and turned away, as if trying to come up with a good one.

Euphemia le Britannia racked her brain for a good cover name for herself, she could tell that Suzaku was already suspicious of her. She couldn't use her real name as the soldier would obvious recognize that, but she didn't want to use too random a name or she might forget she gave herself it. Finally, the nickname Lelouch and Cornelia gave her popped into her head. Hardly anyone ever used it so Suzaku wouldn't know it and it was technically her name.

"Euphie!" Euphemia replied happily.

"Euphie?"

"Yes, Euphie."

Suzaku smiled and started to pull off his sunglasses to properly introduce himself.

"My name is…"

"Don't tell me" Euphemia stopped him. "Cause I already know it, you're a celebrity. Son of Prime Minister Genbu Kururugi, Private Suzaku Kururugi."

With their names out of the way, Suzaku decided to take care of one last thing. He quickly swept the surrounding area. Just like he thought, there was no one.

"You lied before" he said, his back to Euphemia. "There's no one chasing you at all, right?"

He turned back around to get an answer, but she was gone. Wondering where she went, Suzaku took another quick look around and saw her a couple feet away, talking to a cat with an injured paw.

"Meow, meow. Aw, does the kitty's paw hurt? Oh!" The cat apparently didn't like Euphemia talking to it and hissed at her, but the pinkette wasn't giving up.

"Meow, meow, meow." She then reached out to pet the cat, which quickly changed its mind and allowed her to pet it. It seemed to enjoy the attention. "Meow, meow."

Euphemia then picked the cat up, which purred loudly. Suzaku walked over, interested in the conversation between girl and cat. Euphemia held the cat out for Suzaku to pet. Chuckling, Suzaku reached out to do just that, but the cat apparently didn't like him the same way it liked Euphemia. It quickly opened its mouth and bit down on Suzaku's fingers, hard.

"Oh my!" a worried Euphemia said.

The cat was very stubborn and didn't seem to want to let Suzaku go, but after a bit of tugging, he finally managed to get his finger free.

"Are you okay Suzaku?' Euphemia asked, softly petting the cat.

"Yeah," Suzaku replied, showing off his finger. "See, no blood."

"We should probably bandage your finger, just in case. And while we're at it, we should also fix this little guy's paw."

The cat seemed to like the idea as he settled into Euphemia's arms contently and purred. "Aw, so cute."

The pair and cat started walking again. Suzaku knew where a nearby store was where he could purchase bandages for himself and the cat. During the walk, the girl and cat continued their little conversation from earlier.

"Meow, meow, meow."

"Say, Euphie" Suzaku asked as he watch the two, "how do you think that cat got hurt anyway?"

"He says he had a bad landing, right Arthur?" Euphemia responded, turning back to the cat with the last two words.

"Arthur?"

"Uh huh, that's his name."

The cat meowed as if to say Euphemia was right. Suzaku had a difficult time holding in his laughter of the cat telling Euphemia its name but somehow managed to hold it.

"Did he introduce himself?" Suzaku asked

"No." Euphemia said simply. "But his name's Arthur all the same." She said that last part like she knew he was laughing on the inside but it didn't matter to her. The two were so wrapped up in their little conversation, Suzaku didn't even notice when he passed by the transport for the Lancelot Knightmare Frame, waiting for him exactly where Lloyd and Cecile said they would be waiting for him.

When they reached the store, Suzaku quickly bought the bandages and joined Euphemia and Arthur on some nearby steps. There, he watch as she carefully fixed and bandaged Arthur's leg. The cat just sat there patiently, waiting for her to finish.

"Do you have trouble with cats?" Euphemia asked as she finished tying the bandage on.

"I like them just fine." Suzaku said. He reach out to try and pet Arthur again but the cat showed his displeasure by hissing at him. "However, the attraction isn't mutual."

"I think unrequited love is the mark of a kind person."

As if sensing that they were finished with him, Arthur stood up and quickly bounced away down the street.

"Oh, the kitty ran away" Euphemia said sadly.

Suzaku followed the cat with his eyes, hoping for Euphemia's sake that it wouldn't get hurt out there. Once it bounded around a corner, he decided to ask the question that had been plaguing him for the past couple of minutes.

"Euphie, why did you tell me that lie when we met?"

"Do you ask because you're concerned about me?"

"Huh?" Suzaku asked, confused. "Of course."

"Good." Euphemia then stood and grabbed Suzaku's arm and started dragging him. "Then you can accompany me some more. Come on, it'll be fun!"

Unable to protest, Suzaku allowed Euphemia to drag him around the concession. First off was a couple of shops were they window shopped a bit. Euphemia expressed interest a few of the outfits displayed and imagined herself wearing them, sometimes with a little input from Suzaku. When she mentioned that she was getting hungry, Suzaku showed her to a few stores that sold local cuisine. Suzaku enjoyed it greatly and Euphemia bravely decided to try some, unlike her older sister, and found that much of it was quite good.

After eating, they continued their little tour and explored as much of the Settlement as they could. Euphemia seemed to enjoy herself and that made Suzaku pleased. For some reason, he just wanted this strange girl to always be happy and he had a feeling that if she was happy, then he would be as well. The only downside to their tour was when a news broadcast talking about Zero and his rescue of Suzaku appeared on a public news-screen. Euphemia looked so downcast that Suzaku promised himself that he would make the rest of the trip even more enjoyable for her.

"You know," Euphemia said as they walked, "being here is just like being in Britannia. I feel right at home."

"Are you from the Homeland?" Suzaku asked.

"Yeah, I was a student there up until last week." Euphemia answered.

"Last week? So, what are you doing now? By student you mean high school right? You can go sightseeing anytime can't you?" Suzaku asked.

Euphemia giggled. "You ask a lot of questions Suzaku."

"Oh, sorry." Suzaku said embarrassed.

"Oh! No, I didn't mean it like that. You see, today is the last day of my vacation and I wanted to see as much of Area Eleven as I could because I'd like to know what kinda' place it is." Euphemia replied.

"Well, you didn't need me for that." Suzaku said sheepishly.

"No, I'm glad I could see it with you." Euphemia said.

"Is that right?" Suzaku asked.

Suzaku turned his head so that he didn't have to look at Euphemia's face. The truth was, he was starting to feel the same way. In fact, he wanted to spend as much time with Euphemia as he could. If he wasn't an Honorary Britannian or if she was an Eleven, he'd probably ask her out. But they had their respective positions, so he couldn't.

And, from what he learned about her, she was probably a nobleman's daughter as she acted a bit like Lelouch and Nunnally when they had stayed with them before the invasion. If an Honorary Britannian asking a common-born Britannian out was impossible, then what chance was there of him asking out a noble-girl? It was probably best to just enjoy what time they could spend together.

"Suzaku?" Euphemia asked, pulling him out of his thoughts, "could you take me to one more place please."

Suzaku dropped his bag and turned around to give a mock bow. "Your wish is my command mi-lady, where to?"

The answer was not what he was expecting. "Take me to Shinjuku."

Suzaku gasped and looked up to see a different Euphemia. Standing as straight as she could, Euphemia attempted to adopt the same commanding presence Cornelia had when she was ordering her troops.

"Suzaku Kururugi, please escort me there." Euphemia comanded

* * *

_Unknown Location_

_Orange_

"Right, understood. I'll set everything up for then." Jeremiah said on the phone. He then walked into the research hanger. "They won't even know what hit them." Jeremiah smirked as he looked at the large orange Knightmare.

"Sir, Princess Cornelia is on her way to Area 11. She will be here in an hour." one of the researchers on Code-R told Jeremiah

"Very well. I will be on my way in order to greet her." Jeremiah said as he grabbed a manilla folder labeled Zero.

* * *

**Shinjuku Ghetto**

_White Knight and The Princess and The Idiot and The Tinkerer_

Shinjuku was a wasteland. It reminded Suzaku of the village he, Lelouch, and Nunnally passed through not long after the invasion began. The only difference was the lack of countless numbers of bodies. But right now, that village held more life then than Shinjuku did now.

After a few minutes of arguing and Euphemia's stubborn statement that she would go with or without Suzaku, the pair had finally arrived. He didn't know why Euphemia wanted to see this place but looking at it now, Suzaku realized that he needed to see it for himself.

"The Shinjuku Ghetto, ruined again. The residences were just starting to return too." Suzaku said, referring to the Britannian invasion.

Posters asking about missing loved ones covered a crumbling wall a few feet away. Graves made of stone, stick, anything the Elevens could use, stood in a field. Many were unmarked, showing that the owners weren't identified. Either their families' were dead as well, or were unable to identify them. A few were personalized, which meant that at least some people had managed to survive and were remembering the fallen.

The whole thing made Suzaku sick. All that unnecessary death, just because a few people didn't want to try and make the system work. No, they had to resort to terrorism and this was the result. The wind picked up and carried with it the voice of two Britannians.

"Man, they didn't use RG on the Elevens. I figured they wouldn't." the first student said.

"Hey, those are marks from hummer rounds! Get a clear shot of it." the second student replied.

While Suzaku didn't approve of Elevens fighting Britannia, neither did he like to see his peoples' suffering as the amusement for a bunch of stuck-up Britannians. However, he knew that he was an Honorary Britannian and that he could do nothing to stop them. It all just made his resolve stronger. Beside him, Euphemia was having similar thoughts. Unfortunately, not everyone shared their thoughts.

A trio of Elevens decided that they had to punish the students for their tourism into the ghettos. One of them, a loud-mouthed man with reddish-brown hair ran right up to them and knocked a camera out of one of the student's hands.

"Get outta here you Britannian bastards!" Tamaki yelled

The students seemed too scared to do anything and Suzaku knew how this would end. Not willing to let more unnecessary blood be shed, Suzaku dropped his bags and spoke clearly to Euphemia.

"Stay here!" Suzaku then ran up to where the fighting was about to begin.

"How dare a lowly Eleven speak to us like…"

"Don't call me an Eleven!" the loud-mouth shouted. "I'm Japanese!"

"Wrong," said the other student, "you seem to forget you people lost. You're nothing but a beaten dog."

"You racist pig!" Tamaki shouted back, ignoring his own hypocrisy.

"Stop, please, no violence!" Suzaku ran up the hill and tried to grab the loud-mouth.

"Stay outta this!" Tamaki shouted back, taking a swipe. He only succeeded in knocking Suzaku's sunglasses off, exposing his face. "You…are you, Suzaku Kururugi?"

"The guy who killed Clovis?" one of the people said

"No you idiot, Zero's the one who killed him." Tamaki replied

Suzaku look away, even his own people didn't trust him. But the loud-mouth wasn't finished.

"Tsk, this guy's nothing more than a slave. Big deal, you're an Honorary Britannian. Nobody cares. You sold your pride, your people, your soul, and yet you call yourself Japanese!" Tamaki yelled

"No, you're wrong…" Suzaku tried to reply

"I am NOT wrong you stinking Britannian lap dog!" Tamaki replied angrily

The man moved to punch Suzaku but he was ready. Using the training given to him by Tohdoh and the Britannian military, Suzaku planted his feet, grabbed the man's outstretched wrist, and gripped the collar of his shirt. Using the man's own forward momentum, Suzaku flipped him over and onto his back in half a second, shocking the other Elevens and the Britannians. However, that single move wasn't enough for the man as he quickly stood up and got ready to fight again.

"Stop please. I warn you, I've been trained in military combat, don't make me fight my own people." Suzaku said

"Like Hell we're _you're_ people!" Tamaki yelled

"Come on Tamaki," one of the other Elevens said, "just let it go."

He and the third Eleven began walking away. The loud-mouth grunted, but without the backup of his buddies, reluctantly left, but not before muttering 'lousy traitor' just loud enough for Suzaku to hear.

"Suzaku?" Euphemia asked, appearing with hi bad, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah." Suzaku said

"Well I'm not fine" the student with the camera wined. "Just look at my Prime G, and my LX4."

"Why did you wait?" his friend shouted. "Damn it, some Honorary citizen you are."

"Why'd you let 'em go, you should've killed them. What's a few dead Elevens to a guy like you? Who do you think's taken care of you all these years anyway?" the first student said

Euphemia, having enough, marched right up to the student and did something that surprised Suzaku and both the students, she slapped him. Stunned, the student dropped his camera, breaking it further.

"I will not allow you to insult this man any further you oaf!" Euphemia shouted back, using her 'princess' voice. She didn't care what anyone thought or if Suzaku fought out who she was, no one would insult him while she was around. She was starting to grow fond of him.

The three boys stared at her for several seconds. The one with the camera looked like he wanted to confront her about his now useless camera, but a look at Euphemia's face at the moment was enough to scare him and his friend. They quickly grabbed their camera and ran away. Euphemia looked like she was going to chase after them.

"It is okay, Euphie. Words won't kill me." Suzaku said in order to calm Euphemia down.

"I know but..." Euphemia started to say but a trailer car pulled up in front of both her and Suzaku.

"Sorry to interrupt you Princess Euphemia, but your sister is about to land so you need to be there. Also Suzaku needs to report to the engineering core for some testing." Lloyd said in a very happy tone as he stepped out of the trailer. "Also a shame about your acquittal Suzaku, because now you have to work for me again."

"Euphie?" Suzaku was shocked. Euphemia was a princess of Britannia? That explained why she was so familiar, she was Lelouch's sister. Why couldn't he see it before, she had the same eye color! He had spent the whole day with a princess of the Empire and didn't even know it. He was in so much trouble now.

"Sorry I didn't tell you Suzaku. I was just having so much fun." Euphemia apologized.

"There is no need to apologize Princess Euphemia. I should be the one apologizing for not showing you the proper respect." Suzaku said

"I want you to refer to me as Euphie, Suzaku. Just because I am a princess does not mean that you have to be so formal with me." Euphemia scolded.

"Ha ha just like Nunna never wanting to be called a princess." Suzaku said laughing. Suzaku then covered his mouth as he realized what he had let slip.

"Nunna? You knew Nunnally!" Euphemia asked loudly.

"Yes, Lelouch and Nunnally stayed with my family when they were in Japan before the war." Suzaku said reminiscing about the past. "Actually that is why I thought I knew you from some where. You and Lelouch both have the same violet eyes."

"Oh really. That is why you kept looking at my face." Euphemia teased.

"If you two are done flirting, we have to go." Lloyd said in an impatient tone.

Both Euphemia and Suzaku blushed as they got into the trailer.

"We will talk later Suzaku." Euphemia said making Suzaku a little nervous.

* * *

**Government Bureau**

_Battle Queen and Orange_

Cornelia was not happy at all. The start of her month had been decent enough with victory over the middle east and the creation of area 18, the locals there were using very poor imitations of Knightmares, machines that lumbered through and were about 3 Knightmares tall and 6 wide, the behemoths were a scary sight to behold on the battle field, but their size was their undoing, the speed and agility of the Knightmares ran circles around them, on the final battle Sir Guilford Cornelia's knight of honour and General Dalton, lead the assault with the support of the Glaston knights. Cornelia had worked her knightmare around the rear and destroyed the last bastion of rebels on her own, and with all the behemoths out in the field getting taken care of by the Galston knights, it was child's play. That was the good part to her month, the bad part was when Cornelia went to area 11. First Euphemia had caught wind of where her sister was going and opted to leave the homeland for area 11 much to Cornelia's chagrin. Then when Cornelia finally reaches area 11 she finds out that the local government is either corrupt or stupid, they even had the gaul to suggested a welcome party followed by a press release. Cornelia almost executed the man right there, how dare they waste time and not look for her brother's killer, it frustrated her so much she yelled at the man right there and then.

"You dare tell me about a party when the enemy of empire is still free and roaming out there" Cornelia growled in a deadly manner "so I will ask once, and only once. WHERE IS ZERO?! I WANT THE ONE WHO KILLED MY BROTHER CAUGHT! GET ME ZERO!" almost everyone in the proximity flinched at Cornelia's tone.

"I-I-I'm sorry your highness, that will be top priority" stuttered the steward

"I also want all footage we have of this Zero character and his involvements. Any and all information that could be linked to Zero." stated Cornelia as she lowered her long barrelled pistol.

"Yes, your highness" replied the steward with a more even tone now that a gun was no longer pointed at his face.

"Please step this way your highness, we will set you down in one of Clovis' sitting rooms and have the person in charge of the Zero investigation bring the information and report their findings." a maid said courteously directing Cornelia a room with a large computer and a television with several couches in it.

"Thank you be sure who ever is in charge of the investigation gets here very quickly." Cornelia replied in a strained but courteous voice.

Cornelia and her knights followed the young maid to the sitting room. Dalton and Guilford sat down near the door while Cornelia paced the room. A few seconds later the door opened and Margrave Jeremiah Gottwald walked in with a manilla folder under his arm.

"Sorry I was not able to greet you when you first arrived. I was busy gathering all the data we have on this Zero. Unfortunately, there is very little information on him or the woman the was driving the car." Jeremiah said handing the manilla folder to Cornelia.

Cornelia opened the folder and started to leaf through the information. A minute later Cornelia snapped the folder shut. "Is this it?" Cornelia asked annoyed at the lack of information. "Is this all your investigation has uncovered?" Cornelia snapped.

"I am afraid so Princess Cornelia." Jeremiah apologized "We have not found any hints at the identity or whereabouts either figure before you, they both just disappeared. Who ever this Zero character is, he is very good. We do have some facts we were able to gather about the two individuals. The girl is between the ages of eighteen to twenty eight with her hight being between five foot and five foot, eight inches. Zero how ever we only know his age is higher than twenty while his hight is between five foot five inches and six foot six inches." Jeremiah explained.

"How were you able to determine that?" Cornelia asked

"We used several pictures taken from the event at the parade and compare their hights to Private Kururugi's hight." Jeremiah said.

"Well at least someone around here is effecient." Cornelia said sending a glare at the steward. "Now what is Code-R." Cornelia asked Jeremiah.

"What do you mean my Lady." Jeremiah said nervously.

"What is it? It must be important for your subordinate to let Zero go. So I will ask again. WHAT IS IT?!" Cornelia said her patience finally having run out.

"Okay. Everyone else except Cornelia, Guilford and Dalton leave the room." Jeremiah commanded. Once everyone else had left the room Jeremiah got up and locked the door and pushed on one of the ornate carvings next to the door.

"Alright, all the security systems in this room have been shut down. Now we can speak without any of this conversation leaking out." Jeremiah told Cornelia.

"Isn't this a bit excessive Margrave. What is Code-R?" Cornelia asked curious at all of the precautions that Jeremiah was taking.

"Code-R was a secret project of Clovis' that was headed by general Bartley. Prince Clovis charged me with making sure that what ever the project was remained secret. I do not know what the actual project was, only Prince Clovis and General Bartley knew. However I do know that what ever it was if it got out it would tarnish the Prince's reputation. I believe that this Zero character found out about Code-R when he killed either Bartley or Prince Clovis. So we had no choice to let Zero go." Jeremiah explained

"Wait, how did Kewell know about Code-R if you were put in charge of keeping it quiet?" Cornelia asked calmly now that she knew why they let Zero go.

"I needed help to find any possible security leaks, so I got Kewell and Viletta both to look for any possible leaks as well." Jeremiah explained.

"Alright Margrave you have done a good job with this investigation considering the state this government is in." Cornelia said with disdain at the corrupt government of area 11. "However, I will be taking control of the operation along with the Glaston knights." Cornelia said as she got up and unlocked the door. "Now I have to go repremand my sister for running off without telling me."

"By your leave Princess Cornelia." Jeremiah said as Cornelia, Guilford and Dalton walked out of the door.

* * *

_Battle Queen and The Princess_

"Do you think that he was telling the truth Princess Cornelia." Dalton asked as they walked down the hallway.

"I believe that he was telling the truth about the project. However, I think that he knows more about the project then he is letting on. I will let it go since he is guarding my idiot brother's secret. At the very least I now know that Clovis had some very loyal men. What do you two think?" Cornelia said as they came to a stop outside of Euphemia's room.

Darlton scratched his chin. "Well," the scarred man mused "as much as I hate when I'm out of the loop, judging from Gottwald's words, Clovis was involved in something that would be disastrous if revealed to the public, and he is desperately trying to keep it under wraps. He is probably afraid that if he speaks, something will leak out, and isn't sure who he can trust. His paranoia with even the information that it existed proves that."

Cornelia sighed. "I know that. However, we can't just let Kewell be, it would send the wrong message to the troops. A demotion should do for now, until we have a more clear idea of what Clovis was doing. You two wait out here for now. I need to speak to my sister."

"Of course my lady." Both Guilford and Dalton said while saluting Cornelia as she walked into the room.

"Oh, Hi Cornelia." Euphemia said cheerfully

"Euphie, what were you thinking! Wandering of into the settlement unescorted!" Cornelia reprimanded

"But I was not unescorted, I recruited a private to escort me around the settlement." Euphemia responded.

"Still you can't go running off Euphie. You are a princess of Britannia and you need to act like one." Cornelia said.

"Alright sister." Euphemia agreed.

"Good, then promise not to run off without telling me. With Clovis' murderer still on the loose I want you to be extra careful." Cornelia said as she walked out of the door.

* * *

**The Next Day**

**Ashford Academy**

_White Knight_

"Alright class today we will be having a new student join our class." The teacher said at the begining of the class

"I will be joining the student body here at Ashford Academy, begining today. My name is Suzaku Kururugi. It is a pleasure to meet you." Suzaku said from the front of the class

* * *

[Revised]

Pressure Suits

Reduces impact trauma of the wearer, Anti-piercing cloth

(Small arms or trauma when knightmare is hit, not heavy artillery)

This is some of the technology that is used in this chapter. Woo doing this instead of AP studing. Procrastination for the win. Now to study for my APs. School is almost out and then it is off to College.

Only a few more chapters before my story really diverges from the main story line. At the Narita mountain is where it really diverges so after that updates will be very slow.


	5. Council Shenanigans

Early Start: Council Shenanigans

"_Thoughts_"

"Speech"

Action

**Time**

CUSTOMARY DISCLAIMER: I do not, nor have in any way, ever owned anything to do with the original anime or story which my fan fictions are based off of. These stories are written for the sole purpose of entertainment, and not meant to achieve any profit through selling it. Honestly.

I assure you that I do not promote violence against Flamers (I do, however, find it hilarious).

* * *

**Last Time**

"Alright class today we will be having a new student join our class." The teacher said at the begining of the class

"I will be joining the student body here at Ashford Academy, begining today. My name is Suzaku Kururugi. It is a pleasure to meet you." Suzaku said from the front of the class.

* * *

**Now**

_Zero and White Knight and Lotus_

Lelouch could hardly believe his eyes, why was Suzaku here standing in front of his entire class, wearing the uniform of Ashford Academy. It was unbelievable. Not only was Suzaku alive, but he also enrolled at the same school that Lelouch was going to. That meant that someone enrolled Suzaku in the school, which did not make any sense. Why would a member of the military make sure an honorary britannian got a proper education?

Kallen was also thinking along the same lines as Lelouch. _"What is he doing here? It is almost impossible for an honorary britannian to get into a school in the settlement and he was just acussed of murdering Clovis. I will have to ask Lelouch about it later."_

Lelouch and Kallen both watched as Suzaku took a seat at the back of the class and continued to watch him throughout the rest of the day, along with everyone else. Suzaku ignored everyone and instead focused on what was being taught, unlike most of the class. Both Kallen and Lelouch noticed that Suzaku was acting like he and Lelouch had never met before.

Throughout the day Lelouch and Kallen listened to their classmates discussions. They talked as if Suzaku wasn't even human and couldn't hear him. Many were suspicious because of the accusations of him being Clovis's murderer, others couldn't get over the fact that he was born an Eleven, even though he was an Honorary Britannian. This frustrated both Lelouch and Kallen as they both clenched their hands in anger, Kallen because of the insults towards the japanese people and Lelouch because of the insults toward his friend.

As a law, Numbers were restricted from most Britannian areas in the colonies. This included Ashford and only Britannian citizens were allowed to attend. Suzaku was an Honorary Britannian and thus allowed to go to school at Ashford, but he most likely was the first honorary citizen to even attempt to attend.

Deciding to get some answers, Lelouch carefully stood up from his desk and walked over to the classroom door. As he passed Kallen's desk he bumped into it so that Kallen was watching him. As he passed Suzaku, he adjusted his walk so that the boy would notice him. As soon as he was sure Suzaku was watching, Lelouch fixed the collar of his uniform.

'_Now to see if he remembers any of the codes I taught him'_ Lelouch thought as he exited the classroom. He made his way up to the roof of the main building and looked out over the campus as he waited. A few minutes later, the door to the roof opened and he could hear footsteps behind him.

"Seven years since we used that signal," Lelouch said as he turned around. Just as he expected, Suzaku was standing there. "Long time no see, huh?"

"Meeting on the roof. Just like the old days." Suzaku joined him leaning on the rail. "I'm glad to see you're O.K., I've been worried."

"Alive and kicking thanks to you" Lelouch laughed. No need to bring up C.C. or how he got out of the Shinjuku ghetto

"What about the girl from the capsule? What happened to her?" Suzaku asked

"I don't really know, we got separated pretty quickly. She could be dead for all I know. But you would know more about her than I would, right?" Lelouch said _"Now to see what the general army knows about the project."_

"No. The only ones who knew anything were the inner circle of the Royal Guard."

'_That's good. The project is not know to anyone outside the Royal Guard, General Bartley and Clovis. Since they are all dead there is no one else that will be looking for C.C.' _Lelouch thought with an internal smirk.

"What about you, do I still call you Lelouch or are you going by a different name nowadays?" Suzaku asked making it clear why he had not talked to Lelouch yet.

"Officially, My sister and I died during the invasion. Me and Nunnally go by the name Lamperouge now, a pair of orphaned siblings from the Homeland who came to Area Eleven for a new start." Lelouch explained "By the way, what happened at your court martial, Nunnally's been worried. And why did you enroll in this school?"

"I am just as surprised as you were, though I've been getting more than my share of surprises lately."

"What do you mean?" Lelouch asked with a sinking feeling in his stomach

"You heard how Cornelia's become the new Viceroy, right? Well, she brought her sister Euphemia with her." Suzaku said

'_Euphie's here?'_ Lelouch was shocked. Euphie had just been a little girl with a large crush on him the last time he saw her. Now she was going to be the sub-Viceroy of area 11.

"I met her by chance just after my court martial, though I didn't know she was a princess at the time. Turns out she came to Area Eleven before Cornelia because she was curious about it. She heard about what had happened and arranged this so that I could receive a proper investigation. That was that was needed for them to drop all charges." Suzaku explained

"Sounds like you had quite the day." Lelouch said

"Yeah, I nearly had a heart attack when Euphie revealed herself. I had just spent the whole day showing her around the Area and didn't even realize that she was a princess. I thought for sure I was in big trouble. But she just thanked me for showing her around and said that someone like me should be in school. She was the one that pick Ashford. I wonder what she would think if she were to learn that not only were you and I friends, but that we're attending the same school." Suzaku explained with a laugh

"It's been awhile but I would guess Euphie would freak out and cry all over the place in joy. She had this little crush on me when we were little and she just loved to play with me and Nunnally. But as much as we miss her, you cannot tell anyone the truth about me and Nunnally, got it?" Lelouch said sternly

"Alright Lelouch, I got it." Suzaku said. "By the way I think, we should pretend that we don't know each other."

"What, why?" Lelouch asked confused

"How are we going to explain how we know each other?" Suzaku said

"Fine, I will play along for now." Lelouch said

"Great, well I have to get to class so see you later." Suzaku said as he walked down the stairs.

Lelouch stood on the roof for a little while longer before saying into the open air "Did you get all that."

Kallen then walked out from behind one of the pillars on the roof "Only the last part. So an Imperial princess had a crush on you." Kallen said accusingly. "Who are you and Nunnally really?" Kallen demanded.

"Our old identities do not matter, how ever my real name is Lelouch vi Britannia, ex-prince of Britannia at your service." Lelouch said calmly with a mocking bow.

"What?" Kallen said in a shocked voice.

"Like you Kallen, Nunnally and my parents were born from different social classes. Our mother was a commoner at birth and married the emperor. She was disliked by many of the other consorts and was assassinated when we were younger. Nunnally and I were sent to Japan as political hostages, and we stayed with the Prime-minister and his family." Lelouch explained

"That explains why you know Suzaku. But why are you telling me all of this?" Kallen asked

"Because I can relate to you, Kallen. Your father is a britannian nobel who you detest and you fight for Japan. Plus like me you pretend to be physically weak in front people from the school and are an ace level pilot." Lelouch explained

"I was wondering why you pretend to be so physically weak. I do it so I can be absent a lot but why do you do it?" Kallen asked.

"The army often sees those with exceptional physical fitness for recruitment so I need to be sure to stay below their radar. Also spend some time with Milly and you will find out why I pretend to be physically incapable around Milly." Lelouch said with a slight shudder at the end. "Any way we need to get to class." Lelouch said as he grabbed Kallen's hand and lead her down from the roof oblivious to Kallen's flushed face.

* * *

**Later That Day**

_Zero and Gear and White Knight and White Witch_

Lelouch was setting the dinner table when the door opened and Sayoko pushed Nunnally in.

"Hello Lelouch I just got back from a walk with miss Sayoko." Nunnally said

"Hi there Nunnally welcome back. I have a special present for you." Lelouch said with a smirk. He then made the signal to Sayoko to be silent and motioned to Suzaku to walk over to him. Suzaku then kneals down and takes Nunnally's hand in his own.

"Uh. This hand, thank heavens. I knew you would be alright." Nunnally said tearing up

"It has been a long time, Nunnally." Suzaku said with a smile

"So tell me you will stay the night won't you?" Nunnally asked hopefully

"Suzaku's enrolled as a student at Ashford Academy now so you can see him when ever you want to." Lelouch said

"Is that true Suzaku?" Nunnally asked

"Well I still have military duties. So I can't be here everyday." Suzaku said

"You are still in the millitary?" Nunnally asked surprised.

"Don't worry I have been reasigned to the engineering core. It is alot less dangerous." Suzaku said to calm Nunnally down.

"Oh cool engineering, huh." Lelouch said _"I will have to look into what he is working on." _Lelouch thought as he got up to get more tea.

"Here let me help with that Lelouch." Suzaku said.

"Don't worry about it, this time let us take care of you." Lelouch said as he walked into the other room.

"What are you doing wandering around, C.C." Lelouch said as he refilled the tea pot "and where did you get that outfit." Lelouch then turned around to see C.C wearing a pair of his pants and one of his brown jackets.

"That boy out there, he is the Britannian soldier from Shinjuku isn't he. Is that wise." C.C. asked with a stoic expression, ignoring Lelouch's question.

"It will be fine, and if he finds out I can use my Geass to make him forget." Lelouch said "But if you are so worried than you should stay hidden or do something else about it." Lelouch picked up the teapot and walked back into the dinning room.

"Hm, do something about it. Well there is an idea. She does seem to be becoming attached to him." C.C. said to the open air. 'And besides…' She thought to herself with a smirk, 'It would double my chances.'

* * *

_Zero and White Knight_

"You should stop by some other time Suzaku, Nunnally really would enjoy the comapany." Lelouch told Suzaku as he got ready to leave.

"Alright but remember to pretend like you don't know me in class." Suzaku said worriedly

"As I said earlier, I will play along for now. So see you in school tommorow." Lelouch said as Suzaku walked off.

* * *

**Government Bureau**

_The Princess_

In the Art museum created by Clovis, Euphemia was starting her duties as Sub-Viceroy of Area 11. "So I have to pick out a painting for the opening of the museum?" Euphemia asked.

"Yes Princess Euphemia, but for now just look at the paintings so that you can narrow down the choices for the award at the ceremony." Answered the steward.

"Alright, I will look around." Euphemia said but her mind was elsewhere. _"Suzaku I hope that you are having more fun than me right now."_

* * *

**The Next Day**

**Ashford Academy**

_Zero and Lotus and Innocents_

Lelouch was sitting on a bench with Kallen out in the court yard going over possible uniform designs for Kallen's resistance group. "So which one do you think looks the best?" Kallen asked having eliminated several designs.

Lelouch put down the sheet and replied. "I think the black uniforms look the best, I will 'convince' a clothing supplier to create them for us." Kallen started to reply but was distracted when a cat jumped up in her lap.

"Oh a kitty? How did you get here?" Kallen asked the cat giving it a stroke before it hopped off her lap and began to walk away. That was when Lelouch noticed the cat had the uniform design page. "Wait, Kallen get that cat!" Lelouch yelled as the cat ran off with it. Kallen had now noticed what the cat was carrying. "Come back here! That's a naughty kitty!" Kallen yelled.

Both Lelouch and Kallen ran after the cat, running past Milly and Rivalz in the hall.

"I wonder what that cat has that would cause the two most physically incapable people on campus to be running after a cat?" Rivalz wondered.

"It must have had something important to them because Kallen was completely distraught. I've never heard Kallen sound so upset. What could it be? An embarrassing photo perhaps?" Milly mused.

"A love letter?" Rivalz suggested.

Milly's lit up 'a love letter from Lelouch!' her mind squealed. 'I must get that letter so I can tease them!' a grin crept on to Milly's face with that thought. "I have an idea! To the PA system!" Milly cried rushing off to the room where she made all of her announcements with Rivalz following close behind. "Cat hunt Everybody! Anyone who catches the cat gets a kiss from a Student Council member of their choosing and their club budget doubled!" Milly anounced.

"Does that include Lelouch?" a girl asked hopeful; the rest of the girls around her swooned at the thought of kissing Lelouch and in doing so getting the prince of Ashford to fall for them.

A large number of them sighed in reverie.

"Actually I'd prefer Milly." A girl by the name of Sophie said. That snapped a lot of the girls out of their daydreams of a weddings with extravagant lacy white gowns.

"Why don't you go back into the closet?" another girl asked disgruntled that her fantasy of gaining the right to call Lelouch her husband got interrupted.

Meanwhile Lelouch and Kallen were chasing after the cat when Milly's voice went on the intercom.

"Damn it Milly! I said you can't keep deciding things like this on your own." Lelouch yelled in frustration.

"Lelouch we need to hurry and find that cat!" Kallen yelled panicking slightly.

"Calm down we should split up to cover more ground." Lelouch said as they ran down the hall after the cat. "You keep following it, I will cut it off."

"Roger." Kallen said as Lelouch turned down a side hallway.

* * *

_Lovestruck_

Meanwhile Shirley had just finished swimming practice and had changed out of her swimming suit and into her uniform. She was walking toward the student council's office when she heard the announcement.

"Wait, you mean I could have to give a kiss?" Shirley said horrified.

"EXACTLY!" a bunch of boys from behind her cheered many of them having had impure thoughts about her on more than one occasion.

"Man I love to get a taste of those lips!" one of them said.

"Just think, maybe I can steal a girl away from Lelouch." one pondered

"It's not going to be just a lame peck on the cheek is it?" one of the boys asked.

"That'd be enough for me." Another said trying to act like a gentlemen.

"You mean we get to chose where she plants it?" yet another asked. They all looked at each other each thinking his own perverted thought and then excitedly darted off in different directions in the quest to find the cat.

Shirely who was irately blushing stood there stunned for a moment "Milly not again! That is not how I am going to get my first kiss!" Shirely declared before running off to find the cat.

* * *

_Innocents_

"What happens if a member of the student council catches the cat, Milly. We don't get a prize do we?" Rivalz asked Milly as they got on to his motercycle.

"Do we get a prize? Of course!" Milly said with a sly grin on her face.

"We what are we waiting for. Alright this is my time to shine!" Rivalz said revving the engine and taking off at full speed.

* * *

_Lotus and Lovestruck_

"Offering people up as prizes, I can see why Lelouch pretends to be weak around Milly." Kallen said frowning as she ran after the cat. Kallen then turned the and bupped into Shirley who was running down the side hallway. "I am so sorry... Shirely what are you doing here and why is your hair wet?" Kallen said as she started to apologize.

"I just came from swimming practice. We need to catch that cat or Milly will make us kiss somebody!" Shirely said panicking.

"I was following it down the hallway, so if we hurry we can corner it." Kallen said as she started to run after it with Shirely following behind her.

Kallen and Shirely followed the feline thief to a dark room where the creature seemed to have taken refuge within a small vent. They had him cornered, they only needed to wait for the supposed wanted cat to come out of the hole and spare them the President's coveted prize. The kiss.

"We have him now." Kallen declared to Shirely as both girls readied themselves for their soon to be captive.

"Kallen?" Shirely asked shyly to Kallen with her eyes slightly cast down.

"What is it?" Kallen countered as she turned her attention to Shirely with slight annoyance.

"Who would you want to kiss Kallen?" Shirley asked suspiciously "Would it happen to be Lulu?"

"What no!" Kallen said flustered. "Why would you say that!"

"Do you…have something going on with Lulu?" Shirely asked quietly ignoring what Kallen had just said.

"Of course not! What the – " Kallen said only to stop as she felt something brush her ankles while completely trying in vain to hide her blush caused by the lovestruck girl's question.

Her reaction caught the other girl's attention also, now both of them are staring at the cat in shock. Kallen quickly dived for the cat, but the cat managed to avoid her grasp but dropped the paper it was holding. "Yes I got it." Kallen exclaimed.

"Kallen what is on that paper?" Shirely asked completely baffled at Kallen's behavior while the cat managed to escape in the confusion.

"Nevermind, we still need to catch that cat." Kallen said getting up and putting the paper into he pocket.

"Oh right!" Shirely said ashamed that she let the cat get away.

"Come on, we can still catch it if we hurry." Kallen said running out of the back room.

* * *

_Zero and White Knight_

"I can't let anyone see it!' Lelouch said as he spotted the cat and chased it into the bell tower but stopped when he saw Suzaku. "Suzaku!" he said startled "you're chasing the cat too?"

"Well yeah, it sounded like fun." He answered before running up the stairs with Lelouch running after him.

"Suzaku leave the cat to me." Lelouch said trying to get Suzaku to stop chasing the cat without revealing his physical abilities.

"Are you kidding, I have always been more agile than you remember." Suzaku said laughing

"Quit talking ancient history." Lelouch said getting closer to Suzaku

"It was only seven years ago, although you have gotten better to keep up with me the 'exercise nut' in your words." Suzaku said impressed

"Quit lording that over me." Lelouch said

Lelouch caught up with Suzaku when he started crawl out the window.

"Suzaku don't!" Lelouch yelled as he climbed out on the roof. '_Out of all people why did it have to be him to corner the cat?_' Lelouch thought

"It's okay Lelouch I'll be fine! Just stay there." he said obliviously.

"_I will be exposed if he sees the images on that sheet!_' Lelouch thought. '_I have to distract him_' he pretended to slip as he climbed out the window. "Suzaku! Help!" he called out. In a panic Suzaku slid down the roof shingles and caught Lelouch before he fell and helped him climb back into the window they came out of. Fortunately for Lelouch the cat ran off the roof back into the tower and he quickly caught it. "Thank you for saving me Suzaku." Lelouch said '_Where did the paper go._'

"Don't mention it." Suzaku said sheepishly.

"Hard to do when the entire student body saw you save me." Lelouch said as they both walked down the stairs.

* * *

**At the Same Time**

_Lotus and Lovestruck and Innocent_

"So someone's got it cornered huh." Milly said getting out of Rivalz's sidecar. "Who is the lucky winner."

"Up there!" Shirley shouted pointing to Suzaku and Lelouch on the roof. "Wait is that Lulu?!" Shirley yelled panicked. Everyone then saw Lelouch slip and start to fall off of the roof. "Lelouch/Lulu!" Kallen and Shirley shouted at the same time before looking at each other surprised.

Milly saw that Suzaku had caught Lelouch before he fell. "Well thank goodness Lelouch is safe. I would hate to have to console his dual lovers." Milly said with a smirk and a teasing tone in her voice.

"What!/Madam President!" Both Kallen and Shirley yelled with blushes on their faces. "That is not what it is like at all, we are not lovers." Both yelled again.

"Ah young love, so innocent, so obvious. You both even reacted the same way." Milly said with a cheshire grin on her face.

"Milly, they went back inside and I think they have the cat." Rivalz said slightly disappointed.

"Do you think that they could be friends?" Nina asked with a nervous tone of voice.

"Why don't we find out now, here they come." Milly said in a boisterous voice

* * *

_Zero and White Knight and Lotus and Lovestruck and Innocents_

"See I told you have everyone's attention." Lelouch said smugly as he walked out of the tower carrying the cat.

"I blame you." Suzaku said sourly with several scratch marks on his face.

"Not my fault that cats hate you. Maybe the animals are sensing something sinister about you." Lelouch teased.

"Lulu, thank goodness." Shirley said with relief. "I thought you were going to fall."

"Thank you so much for saving Lelouch." Shirley said excitedly after turning to Suzaku.

"Yeah you really saved the day, new guy." Rivalz said giving Suzaku a thumbs up.

"So, do you to know each other then." Nina asked nervously.

"No we..." Suzaku started to say before Lelouch cut him off.

"We are friends." Lelouch said. "Madam President would you permit Suzaku to join the student council."

"Well, you are the vice president. I suppose I can not refuse." Milly said. "But now, back to the matter at hand." Milly then turned to Suzaku.

"Suzaku, was the cat carrying anything when Lelouch caught it." Milly asked, eggar to get any dirt on Lelouch that she could.

"Sorry, it wasn't carrying anything." Suzaku said rubbing the back of his head.

"Aw and I thought I finnally had some dirt on Lelouch." Milly said pouting.

"Milly I told you earlier, you can't just decide these things on your own. Putting the whole school on hold just to get some dirt on me." Lelouch scolded Milly who just smilled smuggly.

"Don't pick on Madam President, Lulu." Shirley said to Lelouch. Shirley then turned to Milly.

"Milly, Kallen and I managed to get the cat cornered but it got away. However it dropped a sheet of paper that Kallen managed to snag." Shirley said.

"Hm, so Kallen has the evidence." Milly said thoughfully. "Any chance you will give it to me, Kallen."

"No way, you offered my first kiss off as a prize! I am definately not going to give you anything on Lelouch!" Kallen shouted angerly before saying in a meek voice. "So, no Milly."

"Well then since Lelouch caught the cat and Kallen found what ever it is the cat had, they both have to kiss!" Milly said excitedly with a grin that would scare the devil on her face.

"What!" Yelled the entire student body.

"Milly, you are insufferable." Lelouch said as he walked towards Kallen.

"Wait Lelouch, don't you dare." Kallen said backing up slightly before Lelouch managed to grab her right hand and pulled it up to his face and kissed the back of her hand.

"Now, you have to give me a kiss Kallen." Lelouch said with a smirk.

Kallen while blushing heavily walked over to Lelouch and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "There done." Kallen said her face matching the color of her hair. Most of the students walked away after that because of the anti climatic end to the cat chase.

"Aw that doesn't count you two, you really have to kiss." Milly said slightly upset her plan did not work.

"You never said where the kiss had to be, so both of the kisses are valid." Lelouch said with a smirk.

"Well now that that is settled we should have a party to celebrate the catching of the cat. Everything is on Lelouch of course." Rivalz said with a smile.

"Rivalz back off. Milly just tried to force Lelouch and Kallen to kiss." Shirley said. "They both probably want some time to themselves."

"So you approve of their relationship then Shirley." Milly said smirking. "Trying for a threesome then?"

Shirley realizing how her words sounded quickly flushed red."What, Madam President that is not what I meant at all. I meant time to themselves separate from each other and us, not both of them together." Shirley said.

Meanwhile Suzaku was smiling happily at the antics of the student council.

* * *

_Zero and Lotus and The Emperor_

Britannian Music plays in the background as people throughout Britannia turn towards a screen with the imperial funeral of Prince Clovis on it.

The announcer then said. "Now presenting his royal majesty, the Ninety Eighth Emperor, Charles zi Britannia!" The camera then zooms in on the Emperor.

Charles zi Britannia began his speach. "All men ... are not created equal. Some are born swifter of foot, some with greater beauty. Some are born into poverty; others are born sick and feeble. Both in birth and upbringing in shear scoop of ability that, every human is inherently different! Yes, that is why people discriminate against one another, which is why there is struggle, competition, and the unfaltering march of progress! Inequality is not wrong, equality is! What of the EU who made equality a right? Rabble politics by a popularity contest. The Chinese federation with its equal distribution of wealth? A nation of lazy dullards. But not our beloved Britannia. We fight, we compete; evolution is continuous! Britannia alone moves forward; advancing steadily into the future. Even with the death of my son Clovis, demonstrates Britannia's unswerving commitment to progress! We will fight on, we shall struggle, compete, plunder, and dominate and in the end the future shall be ours! All Hail Britannia!" Charles finished by thrusting his arm into the air as he chanted.

People through out Britannia chanted along. "All Hail Britannia!" The chant of 'All hail Britannia' rang throughout the gym where all the ashford students were standing at attention. Every person attending the funeral was shouting it. It made Kallen sick. "_I swear, the Emperor will pay for his crimes, even if she had to kill him myself." _Kallen thought. Kallen glanced over at Lelouch to see how he was fairing. Kallen shuddered at the dark look that Lelouch was giving the screen.

* * *

**The Next Day**

_Zero_

"Lelouch, what can I do for you today." Ruben K. Ashford, the headmaster of Ashford Academy asked with a kind smile as he glanced at Lelouch.

"Good day sir," Lelouch greeted as his left eye began to shine a bright crimson. "You will give me access to the factory that belongs to the Ashford Foundation but is no longer being used by you and your family. Do the task as discretely as possible and make sure that no one in your family will be aware that you have done this. Afterwards forget about having the factory." Lelouch ordered as his Geass command took control of Ruben's mind.

"Of course my lord," Ruben mumbled with a dazed look. A few seconds later the order receded and the red rings faded from the headmaster's eyes. "Lelouch, what do you want from me again?" The Headmaster inquired.

"Yes, Sayoko called me and told me that Nunnally is sick and so can't attend classes today." Lelouch said.

"Thank you for letting me know, I will excuse Nunnally from her classes. Tell her I hope she gets well soon" Ruben said.

* * *

_Zero and Lotus_

Kallen was currently observing Lelouch Lamperouge, the man who was her leader the masked man Zero. She was confused by what he said to her earlier and by his behavior.

Around the student council Lelouch was the Vice President and the only one to rein in the hyperactive President to any effect. Around the student body, he was this enigmatic, Ice King whom was the dream boy of most of the female students in campus. If Lelouch was around his sister, he was the perfect big brother just like her late elder brother.

But, just a few days ago, Lelouch lead on of the the biggest rescue missions that slapped Britannia right on the face and he did it without breaking a sweat. Lelouch also had apparently been preparing to fight Britannia for years and was an ex-prince as well a shin-obi.

"What a strange man." Kallen mumbled to herself as she escape from her so called friends. _'Like I can consider those idiots' as my friends' _Kallen thought darkly as she desperately searched for a place where she could eat without any Britannians spotting her.

"How are you doing, Q-1?" A voice called for her attention as she shifted her gazed at the source of the voice. "Busy avoiding those Britannian girls that seems to swarm around you or are you just sick and tired acting like a helpless kitten?" Lelouch asked her with a taunting smirk on his face.

Kallen suddenly had the urge to smack that smirk off his face but quickly reminded herself that he was her leader no just some britannian bastard. "Aren't you supposed to be basking on the glory of being the most desired man in the school or are you hiding from the President's ever observing eye?" Kallen retorted back as Lelouch slowly walked towards her, the smirked adorning his face faltering a bit.

"Actually, I'm hiding from the eyes of my adoring public. After yesterday all the girls in the school seem to be trying to get me to go on dates with them." Lelouch answered her as he leaned towards her, his face inches away from hers. "You know, I much prefer the Kallen Kozuki to the weak Kallen Stadtfeld that you show the school. To be honest with you, I find that you are prettier when you are not acting weak." Lelouch commented as Kallen blushed heavily at the comment.

"Are you here just to annoy me or do you have something important to say?" Kallen asked in an impatient tone with her face still a little red.

Lelouch chuckle a bit as he motioned for her to follow him. "I have a present for you in the Library I just wanted to show you it. But if you don't want to see I und..." Lelouch started to say but didn't get to finish since Kallen grabbed his hand and began to drag him towards the library.

"What are we waiting for, then." Kallen said as she dragged Lelouch to the Library. "I just needed the excuse to get away from them."

"Well lets go then." Lelouch said running and forcing Kallen to run as well. "Rai can't wait to show it to you."

* * *

_Zero and Lotus and Tempest_

After Lelouch and Kallen got off of the elevator to see Rai waiting for them.

"Good you brought her." Rai said before quickly turning around and walking toward the Knightmare hanger. Lelouch and Kallen had to walk quickly to catch up with Rai.

"Now, one of my sourses has told us that Cornelia plans to attack the Saitama Ghetto in order to defeat the Yamato Aliance. However she plans to anounce it so that Zero will go there." Lelouch explained to Kallen as they walked.

"It is obviously a trap." Kallen said frowning.

"Yes, however if I don't go she will slaughter the whole Ghetto. But you will be going with me so that we can even out the sides." Lelouch explained as they walked with Rai towards the hangar. "I have already had Ohgi and the other members of your resistance group inform the people in the Ghetto so it will be mostly empty when Cornelia gets there."

"Alright, here we are." Rai said stopping infront of a heavily upgraded crimson Sutherland.

Kallen looked at the frame and was very impressed by all of the upgrades done to it.

"A Fifth Generation Knightmare Frame, this Sutherland now has the performance to match a Gloucester. The features of this Knightmare are the usual for a Sutherland, it has a Cockpit Ejection System, a Factsphere Sensor, and Landspinner Propulsion System. Its armaments however are where I really upgraded the frame. It has an electrified Jousting Lance, two Chest-mounted Slash Harkens, a Sniper Rifle, electric stun tonfa, and a Buzz Saw Shield harken." Rai explained with pride at all the armaments he managed to put on in such a short time.

"Rai, have you slept recently." Lelouch asked, silently dreading the answer.

"Yes, in fact I only woke up an hour ago. Finished this yesterday and then went to sleep." Rai said as Lelouch sighed in relief.

"Now, where was I? Oh right, Kallen here is the manual on the additional features I added to the Knightmare and here is the key." Rai said handing the manual and key to Kallen.

"Thank you Rai." Kallen said very happy with the gift.

"Don't thank me, thank Lelouch. If he hadn't had me upgrade it for you then I would have taken it apart right away." Rai said, dismissing Kallen's apology.

"This beauty is now yours and I suggest you learn how to pilot it quick before our next operation in the Saitama Ghetto." Lelouch said.

Kallen eyes widened in shock as she pointed at the red Sutherland. "You mean to tell me that this thing is mine now, no strings attached?" Kallen asked in disbelief.

Lelouch smile at her before nodding. "Of course Kallen. Later when we get another 7th generation Knightmare frame that fits your style of fighting, then you will upgrade to that. Until then you will have to make due with this. Beside you will need this if we are to take on Cornelia's elite forces, the Glaston Knights."

"But the Glaston Knights are an elite group of almost ace fighters. There is no way I can take them on." Kallen said nervously.

"Kallen, if you could out maneuver a bunch of Sutherlands with an outdated malfunctioning Glasgow then I bet you can wipe the floor with them with a superior Knightmare Frame." Lelouch said with a comforting tone. "Besides I will not let you fight them all at once. I will use tactics to help isolate them. Don't worry it will be fine."

"Alright I won't let you down." Kallen said. "Thanks for the Knightmare, Lelouch." Then Kallen gave Lelouch a quick hug. "And for having confidence in me."

Lelouch gave Kallen a smile and Kallen blushed at having hugged Lelouch and from remembering the kiss he gave her earlier.

"Alright Kallen tomorrow after you read the manual, you need to practice with the weapons. So both of you out, I still need more sleep." Rai said ushering Kallen and Lelouch to the elevator.

* * *

Authors Note

This was a difficult chapter to write since I didn't want to start Cornelia and Zero's fight.

The last few chapters have been revised so that the grammar errors have been mostly corrected.

To annaomous reviewer Tear

Nunnally will not have the Mark Nemo but she will have a knightmare.

Also to those who are wondering, Nunnally can see with the help of the visor from the second chapter, so when ever she is in the base she will wear that. I will explain how it works later.

Also Rai's sleeping patterns and Cecile's cooking are both running gags in my fanfiction to add some comic relief. I mean Tamaki isn't the only one to be amusing in the show.

On a happy note: 100 Follows! Right now there are chibi-sized versions Code Geass characters dancing in my head with joy.

* * *

Lelouch Vi Britannia commands you, Review!


	6. It's A Trap!

Early Start: It's A Trap!

"_Thoughts_"

"Speech"

Action

**Time**

CUSTOMARY DISCLAIMER: I do not, nor have in any way, ever owned anything to do with the original anime or story which my fan fictions are based off of. These stories are written for the sole purpose of entertainment, and not meant to achieve any profit through selling it. Honestly.

I assure you that I do not promote violence against Flamers (I do, however, find it hilarious).

* * *

**Last Time**

"But the Glaston Knights are an elite group of almost ace fighters. There is no way I can take them on." Kallen said nervously.

"Kallen, if you could out maneuver a bunch of Sutherlands with an outdated malfunctioning Glasgow then I bet you can wipe the floor with them with a superior Knightmare Frame." Lelouch said with a comforting tone. "Besides I will not let you fight them all at once. I will use tactics to help isolate them. Don't worry it will be fine."

"Alright I won't let you down." Kallen said. "Thanks for the Knightmare, Lelouch." Then Kallen gave Lelouch a quick hug. "And for having confidence in me."

* * *

**Now**

**The **_**Government Bureau**_

_The Tinkerer and Battle Queen_

In the daylight the government centre looked beautiful. A fortress of steel and glass standing above the rest of the settlement. With the bridge retracted the only aboveground connection to the rest of the settlement was a pair of monorails which had now extended onto the upper level of the fortress.

In one of the knightmare repair bays. Cornelia could tell when someone was trying to sell her something. In this case Lloyd Asplund whose report on his new knightmare had the clear purpose of getting her to allow him to deploy it.

"I understand the Lancelot's pilot is an eleven?" Cornelia said getting straight down to business.

"That is correct, an honorary Britannian. However..." Lloyd said with a smile.

"I'm promoting this man from private to warrant officer. That should satisfy him. I'm trying to win without relying too heavily on the numbers. Besides soon there should not be too many scenarios where we will need him anyway." Cornelia said cutting off Lloyd.

* * *

_White Knight and The Tinkerer_

"Sorry you have to sit here watching me do my homework." Suzaku said to Cecile

It was a few days later and Suzaku was at the A.S.E.E.C base. As they were still analyzing the data collected from Shinjuku, they only had him doing basic drills to collect more data to compare to what they already had.

To pass the time he was catching up on all the school work he had with Cecile Croomy watching over him. Unlike most other Britannians he met, Miss Cecile didn't seem to dislike or hate him at all. In fact, she was quite kind and caring towards him.

Actually, now that Suzaku thought about it, nearly everyone in the A.S.E.E.C. was nice to him. It could be due to the fact that thanks to him they were able to get more work done now that they had a Devicer. Or, maybe it was because he was their Devicer that they were nice to him.

"Oh, don't worry about it" Cecile said, looking over at him from her own work. "You've never attended a regular school before so it can't be helped."

It was true. Before Japan's invasion, Suzaku had been taught by some of the best tutors his father could buy. After the invasion, education was pointless for an Eleven so he never went. This was the first time in seven years that he actually had a formal education and he had a lot of catching up to do.

"The guys on the Student Council are helping me the best they can, but it's still hard." Suzaku said

Cecile chuckled then said "To be perfectly honest, I was worried about you. It is supposed to be a liberal school, but I was afraid you weren't fitting in well."

"Yeah at first I wasn't fitting in. But I happened to run into an old friend of mine that helped smooth things over." Suzaku said laughing as he remembered the cat chase.

"Make sure to keep your friends close. They always are necessary for a heathy psyche. Anyway try one of my rice balls." Cecile said comfortingly.

"Alright," Suzaku said picking up one of the rice balls and taking a bite. "Um, there is jam in these." Suzaku said politely, wincing at the strange taste.

"Yes, I happened to get my hands on some blueberry jam." Cecile said smiling, unaware of the turmoil Suzaku's stomach was in.

"All right everyone, pack it up, pack it up, we done today, don't do anymore! Hip, hip, hooray! That's all folks." Lloyd said loudly before giving a depressed sigh and slouched forward in defeat.

Suzaku, still unused to his boss's unusual behavior, could only stare in confusion while around him the rest of the Camelot workers were starting to follow orders, more than used to Lloyd's eccentrics. Cecile just shook her head.

"Go back to school Suzaku. Classes may be over for today but it's important to have a social life as well. Not to mention, you might miss something interesting today."

"Right" Suzaku smirked.

* * *

_Lotus and Lovestruck_

Meanwhile, in the Student Council Room, Shirley and Kallen were busy setting up Arthur's new house. Of course, the cat himself was too impatient to wait for his house. Four times already Kallen had to remove the feline from the box she was working with to get at the materials he was laying on.

Shirley was taking the pieces Kallen already had taken out and putting them together. As they were alone in the Council room, Shirley thought that now was the best time to get some answers to questions that were bothering her.

"Kallen, can I ask you something?"

"Huh?" Kallen looked up and Arthur took this opportunity to jump back in the box. Sighing, she reached in to grasp the cat. "Oh, sure."

"You don't have to answer if you don't want to, but, I'd really like some answers."

"Go ahead and ask Shirley, I'll answer you honestly" Kallen responded while also scratching behind Arthur's ears to distract him.

Shirley was silent for a few seconds before she spoke again. "Kallen are you hiding something from us?"

"Huh?" Kallen said confused while continuing to pet Arthur.

"If it is something too personal, I promise not to be shocked or anything." Shirley said stopping what she was building on the cat house.

"No, I am not hiding anything." Kallen said.

"I saw you the other night, Kallen." Shirley said as Kallen bristled. "You are going out with Lulu aren't you?!"

"What, no I am not." Kallen said trying to calm Shirley down.

"I saw Lelouch holding your hand ad walking you back to the girls' dorms." Shirley said as she turned around to face Kallen, so Kallen let Arthur go and stood up.

"That…that wasn't anything." Kallen tried to defend, while the redness of her cheeks betrayed her.

"You mean, it wasn't anything special?!" Shirley said with her imagination running rampant.

"No, that is not what I meant at all." Kallen said getting annoyed at Shirley's overactive imagination.

"You were trying really hard to get what that cat was holding and you wouldn't show it to Milly. It was a love letter from Lulu, isn't it Kallen. That is why neither of you wanted Milly to see it." Shirley said tearing up.

"Will you listen to me. If we were dating why wouldn't we kiss when Milly tried to make us kiss." Kallen said iritabley.

"You are trying to keep it a secret and since you are dating you can kiss anytime." Shirley said acusingly.

"That is it!" Kallen yelled. "Get it through you head. There is nothing going on between Lelouch and I." Kallen then picked up Arthur and stormed out of the council room leaving a upset Shirley behind.

* * *

_Lotus and White Knight_

Just after Kallen walked out of the council room, Suzaku walked up to her carrying a fuzzy cat teaser. When he saw him, Arthur immediately popped up in interest, though whether that was from the toy or the entrance of his favorite chewable Kallen didn't know.

"Here," Kallen said, placing the cat in the boy's arms, "I've got to get going." Kallen said as she walked away. Barely one second later and Kallen heard the sharp gasp coming from Suzaku. Hearing Suzaku in pain brightened Kallen's day and calmed her down from her conversation with Shirley. While Lelouch had forgiven Suzaku for not accepting Zero's offer, Kallen was still angry at Suzaku's naive attitude.

"_Today is the day of the attack on the Saitama Ghetto so I need to find Lelouch and head out_." Kallen thought as she walked towards Lelouch's room.

* * *

_Zero and White Witch and Lotus_

_"In a surprising turn of events, Cornelia li Britannia, third princess of the Empire and new viceroy of Area 11, has announced a change in politics. More effort and resources are to be placed into both police and the military, to hopefully finally bring an end to the terrorism that has ravaged Area 11 ever since..."_

Lelouch turned off the television, and leaned back into his chair. "So Cornelia is my next opponent? This will be interesting." He smirked.

On his bed, C.C. looked up. "It is obviously a trap." C.C. said

"Of course it is but they went to so much trouble, besides there are some questions I wish to ask Cornelia." Lelouch said.

"Cornelia is not Clovis besides, defeating Brittania or discovering who killed your mother. Which is more important to you?" C.C. asked

"They are both of equal importance. The members of the royal family are fighting to see who shall succeed the emperor. Or rather they are being forced to fight by that man."Lelouch said bitterly. A memory of his father flashed in his vision and he gritted his teeth.

"But the very thing you hate is what makes Brittania Strong. The one left standing is the one best suited to becoming emperor." C.C. said.

"Exactly the weak are destroyed or cast aside." Lelouch said.

"Survival of the fittest is the most basic rule of all." C.C. said dispationatly.

Lelouch slammed down his case in anger.

"If that's true than what happens to Nunnally? Am I simply to cast her aside because she is weak? No I will wipe out that kind of world myself." Lelouch said. "Besides the weak can become strong. Even without the ability to walk or see without assistance, Nunnally has accomplished so much, even more than many of the 'strong' members of the Royal family. Now I have to go."

Lelouch heard a click and turned to see C.C. pointing a gun at him.

"You can't go Lelouch. You need to fulfill your part of our bargain so I will not have you dying before then." C.C. said

"What you are doing and saying are contradictory. Besides, nothing short of killing me will stop me from going out there today. So shooting me will just lower my chances of survival." Lelouch said calmly. Lelouch reached out took the pistol and then held it against his own head. "In your eyes I can see it. The gaze of one utterly unconcerned by death." He leaned forwards and pressed the gun barrel harder into his head. While C.C leaned back her face set but still displeased that he had read her intentions. "Because you do not give a damn if you do die. But I know you value my life because if I die I can't fulfill this contract of yours."

"Fine, but if you want to go then I will need to make a contract with Kallen." C.C. said.

"Why?" Lelouch asked.

"If you are going out there with her than I want to increase the chances that you will come back alive." C.C. said

"You can ask her, but I am going regardless and I will not force her to do it." Lelouch said finishing putting on the soldiers uniform. Just then Lelouch's door opened and Kallen walked in.

"Alright Lelouch you ready to go?" Kallen asked before noticing both Lelouch and C.C. had guns out and were pointing at each other. "What the hell are you two doing?!" Kallen yelled.

"We just had an argument on whether C.C. would let us go to the Saitama Ghetto. She will but she wants to give you Geass so that we are more likely to make it out alive." Lelouch explained.

"Kallen, this will improve your chances of defeating Britannia. All I ask is that you fulfill my one wish." C.C. said

"All right," Kallen said reluctantly, "I will accept your contract."

C.C. smiled and then touched Kallen's forehead and Kallen suddenly felt a slight burning sensation in her right eye. As the burning sensation quickly ended Kallen looked in a mirror and saw the Geass symbol in her right eye.

"Alright Kallen, we have to go. You can test your power later." Lelouch said starting to walk out of the door.

"Wait for me." Kallen said running after him.

"Yes, she does remind me of you a little bit." C.C. spoke into the empty air after both Lelouch and Kallen had left.

"What do you mean. Why would I be jealous?" C.C. asked into the air.

"Don't be ridiculous. Only you would try to set one of your friends up with your own son, Marianne." C.C. said with a slight blush.

* * *

_The Scribe_

All across Japan an emergency broadcast informed the public that the Saitama ghetto was being sealed off in preparation for a military operation. "The populace is believed to be sheltering the terrorist group known as the Yamato Alliance. The purge should begin in two hours." In one of the news vans someone spoke up. "Why are we broadcasting about the battle so early?"

Diethard Reid was displeased at the man's naivete. "To draw out Zero obviously."

* * *

**Saitama Ghetto**

_Zero and Lotus_

"Cornelia has sealed the ghetto off and done a much better job than Clovis did." Lelouch said to Kallen over the radio. "It is a good thing we put your knightmare in before hand."

"Yeah, but how did you know about this attack?" Kallen asked over the radio.

"I have my sourses that have to remain secret for now until you can meet them face to face." Lelouch said. "Focus on the battle at hand."

"Right." Kallen said as she got into her Knightmare.

* * *

_Battle Queen_

All around the ghetto tanks, knightmare, APC's and infantry squads formed up.

At one end of the ghetto Cornelia sat on her commanders chair in the G-1 Base. While on the screen before her the circle of blockading units formed. "We've confirmed this is the location of the Yamato alliance?"

Darlton nodded. "Yes milady they've been hiding in this area. Half of the populace is working with them"

"What of the loss in production?" Cornelia asked dispassionately.

"Primary sector output should drop by about zero point zero two percent." Dalton replied.

"Well within acceptable ranges."Cornelia said before turning her head towards the three officers to her left. "All of you participated in the Shinjuku disaster correct?"

Three officers off to the side nodded "Yes and we're extremely grateful for your mercy."

"That's not what I'm asking. Would you say the conditions here are similar?" Cornelia smirked as she said. "To those in Shinjuku."

* * *

_Lotus_

A force of twenty Brittanian soldiers cornered a number of Japanese in a small square. With only one part of it opening out onto the street there was no way out. They then shot down a man in front of a crowd.

A bespectacled Japanese cried out in shock. "Why are you doing this? There are children here, these people have done nothing."

"Exactly you do nothing to reveal the terrorists hiding here. You cover for them. That's treason against a suzerain state." The soldiers lifted their rifles. "Now you will.." He never finished the sentence because a dark crimson Knightmare gunned down all of the soldiers that were preparing to fire.

Kallen turned her knightmare towards the civilians and who she assumed had been the ghetto's civilian leadership. "People of Saitama. My name is Lotus, Zero has sent me to prevent anymore civilian casualties. This section has been marked as cleared by the Britannian forces so you need to hide inside the nearby buildings. Do not come out for anything." Kallen said through the speakers of her knightmare.

"Thank you. You heard her everyone hide inside the town center basement." Said the bespectacled man.

* * *

_Battle Queen_

Back in the G-1 Base Cornelia explained her plan. "We've recreated the conditions that occurred in the Shinjuku incident. If Zero's the prideful type I expect he'll try to kill me."

"Princess Cornelia you're using yourself as bait." One of Clovis' advisors said shocked.

Cornelia sighed. "What you fail to understand is that war is a battle between pride and life. Dalton?"

"We've succeeded in clearing away those in charge." Dalton said.

"It is nearly time to set our plan into motion. So shall we begin." Cornelia said with a smirk.

"Right," Dalton said to Cornelia. "Attention all forces, comence iradication of the Saitama Ghetto. All forces, assume Level one battle stations." Dalton anounced ove the G-1's speakers.

* * *

_Zero_

"Sir, this is Private Dario Sartoras from third reconnaissance company. I managed to find a disc containing terrist information. Could I ask you to transmit it to headquarters for me?" Lelouch said to one of the Knightmares patroling the Ghetto.

"A disk huh. Alright I will take it back to uhg..." The Knightmare pilot started to say as he got out of his knightmare but was interupted by a kunai to the forehead.

"Too easy. I didn't even need my geass." Lelouch said as he took his kunai knife out of the mans head and got into the knightmare.

He then had the knightmare pick up the Sniper Rifle from underneath a large stone where he had Kallen put it earlier.

"Right where I need it. I knew I could depend on you Kallen." Lelouch said smirking.

* * *

_Zero_

In a dingy basement the leaders of the Yamato alliance assessed the situation. It was bad.

"Can't we get through along the saiko line." One member asked

"They have armored tanks blocking it." The leader said.

"We can't even use side roads either." Another said.

The unkempt leader looked at his subordinate and frowned. "What about the other districts like Akakbani or Jojo can they send support?" He asked.

"The Brittanians have covered all entrances, so they can get one or two people in but that's it."

Another soldier ran in and held out a radio. "Forget about that, listen to this."

"I am Zero." All around the table there were gasps of surprise. "I assume you all heard about the Shinjuku incident. Do exactly what I tell you to do and you will win."

* * *

_Zero and Battle Queen_

In the G-1 base Brittanian com officers coordinated the battle.

"B-12 suppression complete, F-7 no sign of the enemy, P 12 move to point 5-1-6" the officer ordered.

"Yes my lord moving to 5-1-6" a knightmare pilot said.

A pair of knightmares leapt from rooftop to rooftop. Inside the broad faced and moustached pilot of the lead knightmare smirked. "No resistance, this Zero is a no show."

His fellow agreed "Yeah, I guess he's just a run of the mill terrorist."

He never heard a reply because at that point a pair of missiles struck both of them in their factspheres.

The Yamato alliance rebels were amazed. "They came, they really came!"

"Just like Zero said they would." Another said shocked.

From atop a building Lelouch activated his factsphere recording the fiery explosion as he reviewed the battle data. "Now then to drag Cornelia out." Lelouch said to himself.

"R-1 R-2 continue to fall back. Draw them to the area where N7 is, B-12 and H-1 open fire at two o'clock and seven o'clock respectively." Lelouch commanded.

A pair of six wheeled tanks were blown apart by anti armor fire.

"P-5's team will commence barrage." Lelouch ordered.

Six Yamato knightmares ambushed a Brittanian squad and ripped them to pieces firing their weapons on full auto. The amount of rounds compensating for any lack in accuracy.

"Gester team lost. Unit five is engaging at point 5-9-2. Kazinki team engaging they were ambushed." One of the officers in the G-1 said.

"The enemy seems to be using Sutherlands captured from our own forces." Another officer said.

The grey clothed officers spoke in anticipation. "It's just like in Shinjuku."

"Has there been any sign of Zero yet?" Cornelia asked calmly.

Lelouch's face was a mask of calm as his violet eyes darted over the comprehensive map of the battlefield before him.

"N-2 continue towards the North East." Enemy infantry were mowed down by knightmare fire.

"R-4 open fire." An enemy VTOL over the southern section was impaled by slash harkens.

"N-1 take the guy on the left." Another tank was blasted apart using anti armor rounds as it passed under a bridge.

"H-1 commence firing on point 26 by 36 fire down the line of the street utilize a shrapnel round."An infantry squad was advancing down a street when there was a massive boom and a heavy shell landed right in the middle of their squad killing them all.

"R-2 engage enemy troop carriers H-1 provide crossfire." A pair of APC's fighting the rebels fell back before being blown apart by heavy weapons fire from a side street. When the rebels reached the street there was nothing there and a direct order from zero diverted them elsewhere.

"B-3 and B-4 take squad two and circle around behind."

A squad of Britannian infantry were mercilessly gunned down by the coordinated fire of two knightmares and a ten man team of Japanese.

"P-3 activate explosives and take out the bridge." A bridge then exploded sending infantry, tanks and knightmares tumbling into the river.

"Point seven has fallen Hally team contact lost." One of the Generals said.

Cornelia's calm voice cut through the panic. "All forces fall back. Further casualties and damage serve no point." Cornelia said calmly.

"Fall back? We can still win this." One of Clovis' officers said.

"We can't fight them like this." Cornelia said.

"All forces fall back behind ghetto perimeter at once, formation does not matter. Fall Back behind Ghetto perimeter at once." Dalton said over all Britannian frequencies.

"Hmm pulling back so quickly?" Lelouch said as he studied the icons falling back from the centre then tapped at one point on the south east part of the circle far from the G-1 base. "P-8 the enemy forces retreating to the south east section near you, cut them off. They're in a cleared zone so feel free to use the chaos mines on them." Lelouch commanded. "_Nice try Cornelia, but I know that the same trick doesn't work twice in war. Sayoko drilled attention and skepticism into my mind since day one of my training. You had more than enough Frames so sending a train through here filled with Sutherlands was obviously bait. You want me to get close to you. You have studied his match against Clovis, and are trying to goad me. _Lelouch thought. Lelouch was grinning a devil's smile as he turned off his Britannian I.F.F. signal so that Cornelia wouldn't be able to track him. "That won't work, dear sister," Lelouch said grinning. "You will have to actually find me. And you were never any good at hide-and-seek. That was always Euphy's expertise. You would always storm out and refuse to keep playing any time that you couldn't find us." Lelouch said nostalgically.

"Q-1, you ready." Lelouch asked.

"Of course, Zero." Kallen said, her eyes flashing dangerously. "Just tell me when to start."

* * *

**Ashford Academy**

_White Knight and Lovestruck_

In a small room being set up for the student councils new pet, Shirley was having a conversation with Suzaku about Lelouch.

"So, Lulu lived here before it was Area 11. Was he a neighbor?" Shirley asked Suzaku.

"Uhm, what about yourself?" Suzaku asked deflecting the question.

"Honestly I didn't like him at first he was so flippant and the only thing he worked hard at was avoiding hard work. But back when we were both freshmen I happened to run into him at a traffic accident. A driver rear ended an elderly couple. He was clearly at fault but he got out and tried to blame it on the old drivers of the other car. That old man had a pretty impressive pair of lungs himself. And then Lelouch got out of his car walked over and calmly hooked the offender car onto the cable of a passing tow truck. Then he got back in the sidecar like nothing had happened. He did not do it to boast about it. He did it with the same bored look he always has. That's when I got interested. What's up with this guy? What goes on in his mind? What does he want to do? I really wanted to know and in the process of finding out I." Shirley said.

"You fell in love with him?" Suzaku said smirking.

"Uhm, you think that is what this is?" Shirley said blushing. "Maybe you are right."

"How dreamy it is to be in love. Oh how I wish." Milly said sadly from outside the door having overheard their conversation.

* * *

_Battle Queen_

In the command base Cornelia smirked. "Zero is no match I will win."

"Huh" One of the officers said.

"Of course this is why Cornelia is called the Goddess of victory." Dalton said with pride.

Cornelia turned her head to the left. "Shall we go then Guildford my knight?"

"It is my honor to obey you milady." Guilford said.

* * *

_Zero_

Lelouch chuckled as he watched squadrons of Cornelia's Gloucesters charge out of the G-1 base. Cornelia's personal guard was entering the ghetto. "You're so predictable Cornelia. Using your royal guard to strike down the enemy. You simply don't trust troops that you have not trained. With the abismal state of Area 11's millitary I can see why though. Hmm?" Lelouch noticed that his phone was ringing. "But I thought that the party for the cat was tomorrow?

* * *

**Ashford Academy**

_White Knight and Lovestruck_

"I know Kallen said there was nothing going on between them, but I feel like she was getting upset to fool me." Shirley said, still not believing Kallen.

"Which is why in this case it is best to ask him directly." Suzaku said while holding an ornate phone. "I'll ring up him up and ask on your behalf, how he feels about you." Suzaku said dialing Lelouch's number.

Shirley's face burned red with embarrassment. "You would do that?" Shirley said.

"It will be no problem." Suzaku promised as the phone began to ring.

"Are you nuts no way!" Shirley moved faster then even she thought possible grabbed the phone and slammed it down with enough force to shake the table.

"Oh, come on I will be subtle." Suzaku said getting the phone back and begining to dial.

"No, I would die of embarrassment." Shirely said. As Shirley struggled with Suzaku they fell over with Suzaku lying on top of her. Their struggle also caused the Cat's perch to tumble over. The cat showed that it did not like to be knocked down and bit Suzaku on the hand.

"Does that hurt much?" Shirley asked blushing at their proximity.

"Extremely." Suzaku said wincing.

"Let me get the first aid kit." Shirley said blushing as she helped get the cat off of Suzaku.

* * *

**Saitama Ghetto**

_Zero and Battle Queen_

The signal cut out. Lelouch berated himself for not deactivating the phone earlier and turned it off. Then tapped another communicator. "Let's see if you take the bait. N-1 move to point four and then activate your IFF. Act as a Brittanian unit."

"We've picked up a distress signal from inside the ghetto. One knightmare transmitting an IFF from the south east"

"Can you contact it? Scramble a rescue team." One of the Officer's ordered.

"No destroy it." Cornelia ordered.

"What? He might be a captive of the enemy." One of Clovis' comanders said.

"I ordered them to fall back. Follow your orders even if it costs you your life. My men understand that perfectly." Cornelia said harshly.

Meanwhile N-1 watched as three Brittanian Gloucesters accelerated towards him. Then they lowered their lances. The pilot exclaimed in panic. "What the hell can't you read the IFF? I'm on your side." Then his nerve broke and he opened fire. The Gloucesters leaped out of the way Guilford landing behind him and skewering the frame with his lance. The rebels frame then detonated damaging Guilford's lance.

"Watch out, these knightmare's seem to be programed to self destruct." Guilford warned the other members of the royal guard.

_Hmm not even waiting for confirmation? How ruthless Cornelia, but not unexpected. _Lelouch thought "N-2 and P-4 transmit your IFFs from points Alpha and Gama. R-1, R-2 open fire on attacking units following N-2. Q-1 take out the units following P-4."

"They are transmitting more IFF which means that it's a trap. Send in more Gloucesters and surround both points." Cornelia said.

Lelouch watched the movement of the Gloucesters especially as they stopped. _Not pursuing? _"R-1, R-2 fall back now."

"Gloucesters have arrived at the Position 1, no sign of the enemy." two of Cornelia's guard reported.

Cornelia smiled "He anticipated my move, we may really be dealing with Zero."

"My Lady, we are having some trouble here. We surrounded the area around the second IFF, but we are being picked off now." Alex Dalton said.

"How many units?" Dalton asked.

"Only one, but it is being supported by sniper fire. This unit is different. It is a red Knightmare of an unknown generation with heavy upgrades to it." Alex Dalton reported with an explosion in the background. "Damn it just took out another unit. I will try and take it down or delay it."

"Send in Guilford and five other Gloucesters to take down that Knightmare." Cornelia commanded. "Zero is most likely nearby. Have the rest go after the Yamato Alliance. And someone take out that sniper!" Cornelia yelled.

* * *

_Lotus_

_I won't lose,_ Kallen told herself. _Lelouch trusts in me enough to go against Cornelia's personal Knights. I must prove his faith in me isn't unjustified. I can't lose! _Kallen thought as she waited for the Glouchester's to come.

Kallen checked over her weapons one more time in preparation for her battle. While her Knightmare now matched a Gloucester in performance, the main part of it that excited her was the experimental weapons it was equipped with. Kallen held up the lance and inspected it. It was only a bit shorter than her Knightmare was tall from the lance's tip all the way to the butt of the handle. It was painted a beautiful crimson color and had four black dagger-like extensions at the base of the lance that each extended up to around halfway up the length of the lance and hummed dangerously. The lance's tip was a refined, fine point that Kallen just knew would be able to pierce any Knightmare armor. It truly was a magnificent weapon for any Knightmare pilot to wield.

Kallen was shaken out of her thoughts as she saw the Glouchesters come into view. "I have to time this just right." Kallen said.

"And... now." Kallen yelled as she manipulated her Knightmare to jump off of the building that she was hiding on and stabbing her lance strait through the rear knightmare of the group, granting the pilot a quick death. She then aimed the assult rifle in her knigtmare's left hand at the next knightmare in the line and fired.

Kallen watched as the purple Gloucester on her right ignited in flames under the shower of her armor-piercing assault rifle rounds. The auto-eject feature barely saved the Britannian pilot's life.

"Damn you. You are dead!" her enemy yelled at her as his landspinners accelerated and shot him towards her Knightmare with his lance extended. "For Cornelia."

"Too slow." Kallen smirked at her enemy as she extended only her left arm's stun tonfa.

As her opponent continued to close the distance between the two of them, time seemed to slow down in front of Kallen. She couldn't see anything other than the charging Knightmare, and it moved as if it was in slow motion. She didn't hear any of the explosions that were happening elsewhere in the battle raging on. Kallen only saw and heard her charging opponent.

_This is what I was made to do,_ Kallen thought as she readied her counter-move. _I was born to be a warrior._

Just as Kallen witnessed the Britannian Glouchester raise its lance, Kallen heard the Britannian pilot yell, "It's over you damn monkey!"

Kallen then spun her Sutherland to her left as soon as the enemy began to stab its lance down so quickly that she ended up directly behind her foe, left arm readied to pierce her enemy.

"I couldn't agree more!" Kallen roared as her extended tonfa stabbed toward the enemy Glouchester's cockpit from behind. Unfortunately for her the pilot managed to turn slightly, making her attack only destroy the knightmare's right arm and sending a jolt of electricity throught out the knightmare. The knight was forced to eject by the electricity running through his cockpit.

Lelouch smirked. "Q-1, several of more of Cornelia's Knights are on their way. Are you ready?"

"You're damn straight I'm ready!" Kallen roared in response.

"Be careful. Even if you are the better pilot, the numbers advantage will allow them to use circling tactics. I will try to keep them separate with my sniper rifle, and keep you aware of their positions. Also be carefuly I believe she will send Guilford to your location as well."

"Thank you the warning," Kallen thanked him. "but I promise that I won't let you down."

"I know that Q-1," Lelouch assured her. "You won't let me down, no matter what." _Whether you win, or lose._

* * *

I would like to thank all of you reviewers. Each review is key and helps me develop as a writer. I appreciate all you all do for me. Even if it's just a simple "good story" each review helps out my drive to write tremendously. While I would like for the reviews to actually tell me what, in particular, made you like my story, I still appreciate that you took time out of your day (even if it's only a few seconds) to say that you liked my story. I just take those short reviews and tell myself that my chapter/story was so good that it left them speechless and the reviewers weren't able to single out any one thing that they loved.

Also I am a cat person and a very huggy person like my female cousin. So Kallen will be more open to physical contact with Lelouch than in the series. Also Kallen will be more open to Lelouch since Lelouch is being more honest with her.

This is part one of a two part chapter. The second part will include the rest of the fighting and the conclusion of the battle. This chapter, like most battle scenes will be in more detail and will probably be two chapters.

So as many of you probbably realized, the one C.C. is talking to is Marianne. There will be more onesided conversations between C.C. and Marianne. Mainly teasing. Sorry for the slight spoiler in this chapter if you have not finished code geass, but then you probably would not be reading code geass fanfiction

P.M. Me with any geass ideas or review them. If I use it I will credit you in the chapter it first apears in.

* * *

Lelouch Vi Britannia commands you, Review!


	7. Queen's Gambit

Early Start: Queen's Gambit

"_Thoughts_"

"Speech"

Action

**Time**

CUSTOMARY DISCLAIMER: I do not, nor have in any way, ever owned anything to do with the original anime or story which my fan fictions are based off of. These stories are written for the sole purpose of entertainment, and not meant to achieve any profit through selling it. Honestly.

I assure you that I do not promote violence against Flamers (I do, however, find it hilarious).

* * *

**Last Time**

_This is what I was made to do,_ Kallen thought as she readied her counter-move. _I was born to be a warrior._

Just as Kallen witnessed the Britannian Glouchester raise its lance, Kallen heard the Britannian pilot yell, "It's over you damn monkey!"

Kallen then spun her Sutherland to her left as soon as the enemy began to stab its lance down so quickly that she ended up directly behind her foe, left arm readied to pierce her enemy.

"I couldn't agree more!" Kallen roared as her extended tonfa stabbed toward the enemy Gloucester's cockpit from behind. Unfortunately for her the pilot managed to turn slightly, making her attack only destroy the Knightmare's right arm and sending a jolt of electricity throughout the knightmare. The knight was forced to eject by the electricity running through his cockpit.

Lelouch smirked. "Q-1, several of more of Cornelia's Knights are on their way. Are you ready?"

"You're damn straight I'm ready!" Kallen roared in response.

"Be careful. Even if you are the better pilot, the numbers advantage will allow them to use circling tactics. I will try to keep them separate with my sniper rifle, and keep you aware of their positions. Also be careful I believe she will send Guilford to your location as well."

"Thank you the warning," Kallen thanked him, "but I promise that I won't let you down."

"I know that Q-1," Lelouch assured her. "You won't let me down, no matter what." _Whether you win, or lose._

* * *

**Now**

_Battle Queen_

"Darlton have two of our units turn off their IFFs and circle around to take out that sniper." Cornelia commanded.

_"Whoever this Zero is, he's a definite strategic genius." _Cornelia thought._ "To be able to coordinate such rapid attacks even with our data is remarkable. Such a shame he is an enemy…I would have liked to challenge him to chess."_

"Of course my princess." Darlton said to Cornelia. He then turned on the radio "James, Harrison, you two turn off your IFFs and go to point 17 and find that sniper." Darlton commanded.

"Yes my Lord." The two responded.

* * *

_Zero_

"N-2 move to point omega and set up an ambush." Lelouch ordered. When the rebel did not respond Lelouch reactivated his radio.

"P-3, P-5, P-6 move and encircle point omega." Lelouch ordered over the radio.

"Screw you and your tactics." One of the the rebels yelled over the radio. "We can take out the ones in front of us."

"No don't it is a trap!" Lelouch yelled over the radio before the line suddenly went dead.

"Damn, N-3 move to point theta." Lelouch ordered while keeping an eye on Kallen's position through the sniper rifle.

"No way, we don't have a chance against Cornelia's forces. I am out of here." One of the rebels said before ejecting his cockpit.

"We can survive if we surrender." One of the rebels said over the radio as the rebels started to disembark.

"No don't, Cornelia is ruthless especially with cowards." Lelouch said but all the lines had gone dead. "Damn gutless cowards!" Lelouch yelled slamming his hand on the consul.

* * *

_Lotus_

_"I can do this."_ Kallen encouraged herself to try and shake any nerves she still had. "_I will win."_

"Here they come." Kallen said as she saw three Gloucesters zooming towards her with their lances extended.

Kallen fired a hail of bullets towards them which they dodge with no visible effort. But because they evaded the bullets, the three Gloucester broke formation, giving Kallen the best opportunity to strike. The shield on her Knightmare began to spin rapidly and she then launched the buzz saw shield towards the nearest Gloucester.

The attack caught the pilot of the Knightmare off guard as the buzz saw cut through the armor of the Knightmare, leaving a long gash through the cockpit forcing the pilot to eject as his machine collapsed in pieces. Kallen then dodged the bullets that were fired from the rifle of the two remaining Gloucester who had taken out their assault rifles.

One of the pilots grabbed his gold lance before charging towards the red Gloucester. The other one gave the pilot cover from behind forcing the Kallen's Knightmare to be on the defensive. This was not to be as Kallen saw the pilot's knightmare get hit by a sniper shot that destroyed the Knightmare's left arm and its gun.

Kallen then fired the buzz saw shield harken at the remaining complete Knightmare. Unfortunately the harken only hit the body before spinning off, slightly damaging the Glouchester and dazing the pilot. That gave Kallen the chance to eliminate the Gloucester; she grabbed her electric Jousting Lance and charged towards the temporarily disoriented Knightmare, the lance sparking with electricity.

The pilot was not an elite for nothing as he quickly shook off his daze. The no longer dazed pilot decided to meet the charge and started charging. Before the two could connect, Kallen made her knightmare dive to the side and do a 360 spin with her lance extended, avoiding the lance thrust from her opponent and slashing the Gloucester in half with her lance causing the pilot to be forced to eject as the Gloucester exploded.

Kallen then began to charge towards the one armed Gloucester. The Gloucester instead of retreating and using its slash harkens charged straight at her. Kallen, sensing a trap, quickly manipulated her Knightmare to do a side flip out of there. Not a moment too soon because just as she got out of the way a Knightmare jumped off of the building behind her and stabbed its lance strait into the ground that her Knightmare previously occupied.

The new opponent's Knightmare was different from the other Gloucesters. Its color scheme was a violet, royal purple frame, a black chest cavity where the Knightmare's cockpit was located, and a silver finish along certain portions of the Gloucester. A black cape was strapped onto its shoulders that went down to the Knightmare's ankle joints and was wiping about the Gloucester in the wind. The knightmare was holding a similar type of lance to the one Kallen was using, except that it was completely gold with damage to the spear head of the lance, at the Knightmare's right side.

Kallen was knocked out of her analysis of the Knightmare as she was forced to dodge as two Glouchester charged at her from the side. Kallen managed to dodge the attack but was clipped by the royal purple Knightmare's slash harken. Kallen cursed as the mobility of her Knightmare's arm was reduced by twenty-five percent.

"Damn it. I won't lose. Lelouch is counting on me." Kallen said while slashing one of the Knightmares down with the buzz saw shield. She than quickly moved her Knightmare away from the three Gloucesters and was out pacing them with her machines superior mobility. However the one armed Gloucester from earlier ran out from behind a building with a cry of "All Hail Britannia." with his lance fully prepared to stab through Kallen's cockpit. Thankfully the Knightmare was sniped in the head forcing the enemy to eject.

"Q-1, you need to watch your back. I have to leave my Knightmare to prepare for our escape." Lelouch said over the radio.

"Retreat? Why I can still fight!" Kallen said frustrated.

"I know however it turns out that the Yamato Alliance is made of cowards. When the first one of them was killed by Cornelia they abandoned their Knightmares and tried to surrender. Needless to say, Cornelia had her knights kill them on the spot." Lelouch explained with venom in his voice. "If we stay much longer it will be a battle of attrition. I will radio you when it is time to retreat."

"Roger." Kallen said reluctantly.

* * *

_Battle Queen_

"Guilford how is the battle going on your end. The terrorists at the other point tried to surrender, so I had the gutless cowards executed on the spot." Cornelia said.

"Whoever is piloting the Knightmare is good." Guilford admitted. "They took down two members of the Glaston Knights in under two minutes. The Knightmare seems to be a red Sutherland with heavy modification that puts it almost on par with our Gloucesters."

"Wait did you say a red Knightmare?" A member of Clovis' advisors blurted out.

"Why is that important?" Cornelia asked icily, angry at being interrupted.

The man realizing his mistake, quickly responded. "At Shinjuku, the main enemy unit was a red Glasgow that was capable of taking out Sutherlands even with only one arm." The man said nervously.

"Hm, it seems like we have an ace pilot on our hands. Guilford make sure you capture or kill this pilot, we can't have Zero keep an ace pilot and they might know more about Zero." Cornelia commanded Guilford.

"Understood my princess." Guilford said before disconnecting his radio.

"This is Harrison, we took out the sniper before it noticed us." Harrison Darlton reported.

"What the...zzzzz." James Darlton said before his radio cut to static.

"Report." Darlton commanded.

"Damn the sniper was a trap. My Knightmare lost an arm when the floor collapsed on us." James Darlton cursed.

"Unfortunate, but now all that is left is to find Zero and take out the red Knightmare." Cornelia said smirking. "Game, set, match."

_"This just proves how dangerous Zero is. I was right to focus my attention on him to start with. But it is over now Zero, Clovis will be avenged." _Cornelia thought.

* * *

_Lotus_

Kallen noticed the three charging Gloucesters were still following her. "Well, I wouldn't want to disappoint them." Kallen said smirking. She then made her Knightmare rush toward a small building before turning around and kicking off of the wall toward the Knightmares.

Two of the three knights scattered but Kallen lashed out with her Knightmare's leg and managed to destroy one of their Gloucester's heads causing the pilot to eject. However the pilot managed to damage that leg using his Lance. The two other Gloucesters wasted no time in charging in towards her with their lances extended. Kallen deflected one of the Lances with her shield and blocking the royal purple Knightmare's lance with her own. Releasing a surge of electricity through her lance to shock the knightmare. The knightmare was able to disengage the attack and threw several lance thrusts toward her. She managed to block each of them with her the shield or deflect the attack with her lance. Kallen then deflected a thrust that was meant to penetrate her cockpit using her spear before using the shield to hit her opponent with a powerful backhand, causing the enemy machine to stumble back. She then threw a punch to the Gloucester's face before using her normal Slash Harkens to send the machine reeling.

The other Glouchester charged towards Kallen in an effort to protect the darker Knightmare. Kallen raised her lance in preparation to meet the other Knightmare's charge.

Their two lances met and crossed between the two of them as they collided. Both Kallen and the Glaston Knight fought for dominance, both their land spinners spinning rapidly.

After a brief moment of no push gained from either Knightmare, the Glouchester began to overpower Kallen's Knightmare and started pushing her back.

"Damn it!" the crimson haired woman yelled cursing. "My Knightmare is too damaged." Kallen then readied her shoulder-mounted slash harkens to fire in an attempt to pierce the purple Knightmare's chest.

The Glaston Knight noticed the movement of Kallen's Knightmare and immediately disengaged from the power struggle and spun his land spinners in reverse to maximize the distance between himself and Kallen.

Kallen's slash harkens fired at the Gloucester as it retreated away from her, not destroying the Glouchester as she wanted but destroying one of its legs causing it to fall to the ground.

The royal purple Knightmare had recovered and chose then to charge at Kallen's Knightmare, lance gleaming in the sunlight as his land spinners squealed on the pavement below. Kallen brought her lance up and deflected the initial charge.

Unfortunately for Kallen the other Glouchester chose that moment to fire both slash harkens at her lance causing her lance to explode, destroying both her lance and her right arm, as well as destroying the Gloucester's slash harkens.

"Damn it!" Kallen yelled as she swung her buzz saw shield at the Knightmare but her attack was blocked by the royal purple Gloucester.

Guilford moved out of the way of Kallen's Knightmare and saw a chance to attack her side with his lance. "Take this!" Guilford yelled.

Unfortunately for him, Kallen was fast as well, grabbing his lance by the tip just before it reached her side. "Eat this!" Kallen yelled as she let go of the lance and cut the end of with her buzz saw shield. She then fired her slash harkens at the downed Glouchester forcing it to eject.

"You are good, I will grant you that. However in the name of my princess, I Guilford will slay you!" The now identified Guilford said as he through the remains of his lance at Kallen's Knightmare. Kallen dodged to the side but that was what Guilford was waiting for. He then fired his slash harkens at her Knightmare's remaining arm, destroying it. "Surrender you now have no hope of winning." Guilford shouted over his Knightmare's speakers.

"Like hell! If I go down, I go down fighting!" Kallen yelled back into her active speakers.

Kallen's radio then buzzed to life. "Q-1, we are retreating. Eject now," Lelouch commanded her over the radio.

"Very well." Kallen acknowledged Lelouch's order. To Guilford she said, "I will admit defeat for today Sir Guilford. However, that does not mean I surrender."

Kallen then sent both slash harkens at Guilford before igniting her ejection boosters and her Sutherland cockpit flew through the sky, away from her loss.

"I'm so weak." Kallen began to sob to herself. "I lost. I failed Naoto. I failed Lelouch."

"Kallen, I want you to go to point 14 and wait for me in the sewer pipes underground. Do you understand?" Lelouch asked, unaware of Kallen's emotional turmoil.

"Roger that." Kallen confirmed her orders while holding back her sobs.

* * *

_Zero and Battle Queen_

"This didn't go the way you planned did it Zero. Are you masquerading as one of us? We'll find out who you are soon enough." Then Cornelia's voice blared over the intercom. "All forces step out of your knightmares and reveal your faces." On her command throne Cornelia smirked.

"Zero's been sighted!" one of the communications operators in the G-1 said.

Guildford and dozens of other soldiers turned their gaze to where Zero now garbed in his signature outfit along with his cape and mask stood. He was perched atop a thin line of concrete that was all that remained of a ruined building.

Cornelia smiled. "I knew it. I knew he had that type of personality."

Darlton screamed out orders. "Capture him Platoons three and five mount up." Darlton yelled.

"Image detected target confirmed all forces move out." A commander shouted.

Several Britannian soldiers along with three knightmares

The Britannians opened fire but before they hit him Zero spread out his arms and leapt backwards off the building.

With a graceful jump, the figure of Zero vanished from the edge and behind the destroyed building. Unseen, it dropped through an open manhole into the sewer headfirst and body straight like an arrow both of his hands extended forward.

The two hands slammed into the ground, and the elbows bent, but the fall had been stopped, the oval of the helmet hovering a few inches above the ground, Zero's body still straight like a candle, before both arms pushed forward, and Zero flipped upright. Once on his feet Zero pulled out a detonator and pushed the button before running through the sewers at near inhuman speed.

As he ran through the flat surface of the sewage tunnels pathway, the sound of a sobbing female reached his ears.

_Is that… Kallen? _Lelouch thought.

* * *

_Battle Queen_

"Hmm, Darlton what is the possibility that this is a trap?" Cornelia asked.

"It is very possible. We don't know much about this character other than the fact he is as prideful as you suspected Viceroy." Darlton said calmly.

"Then there is no point going after him then." Cornelia said.

"No, if he intentionally revealed himself to us he will most certainly have an escape route planned." Darlton replied.

"So self-preservation trumps all? Damn, we may have conclusively destroyed the Yamato alliance but we lost too many Gloucesters doing it. But since Zero is gone there is little point in continuing the purge. Do a final sweep to ensure that we've got them all. But don't bother with any civilian survivors." Cornelia said very slightly frustrated by Zero's escape.

"Cornelia, we have a problem, massive thermal boom nearby." A sensor tech cried out.

Everyone in the G-1 looked up to see the base of a skyscraper one block down from the G-1 explode. The already unstable building began to tip dangerously in the direction of where the G-1 and all the Knightmares were located.

Cornelia cursed loudly. "All Knightmares take evasive action, move the G-1 out of the way." Cornelia ordered.

All of the pilots quickly moved their Knightmares out of the way of the building that was falling and the G-1 base moved just out of reach of the falling building. However when the building hit the ground the seismic impact of the collapsing building was enough to shake the base as well as cause a large number of Knightmare pilots to eject due to their Knightmares being damaged.

"Damn you Zero!" Cornelia cursed loudly. "_You will not get away with this humiliation. I will kill you if it is the last thing I do."_

* * *

_Zero and Lotus_

Kallen was sitting on the concrete pathway of the sewage system where Lelouch told her to go to and wait for him after she'd been beaten by Cornelia's Knights. She had pulled her knees up to her chin and was lightly sobbing underneath one of the few working light fixtures in the Saitama sewage system. Her face was buried into her knees as she felt the warm tears fall down her cheeks.

"Why?" she asked herself through her sobs. She raised her face from her knees and looked at her open, shaking palms. "Why did I fail again? I swore I would never lose again after Naoto was captured. Why am I such a failure!" she screamed to the darkness. "I not only failed my brother." she whispered, "I failed Lelouch too."

"You didn't fail me Q-1." Lelouch's voice echoed off of the walls.

Kallen's back bolted upright as her leader's voice registered in her mind. As she sat there, she wiped her eyes and face of any moisture in an attempt to try and hide the fact that she'd been crying for the last few minutes.

"I'm so sorry." she apologized into the darkness. "You put your faith in me, and I let you down. I lost."

Kallen then turned towards the sound of boots walking on the sewage system's pathway and witnessed Lelouch, dressed in his Zero costume, emerge from the darkness and step into the light.

"I am deeply sorry for losing." Kallen apologized, tearing up slightly. "I failed you."

"You did not fail me Kallen." Lelouch reiterated firmly. His voice leaving no room for discussion.

"Yes, I am slightly disappointed that you were beaten by Cornelia's Knights." Lelouch said.

Kallen winced at Lelouch's statement about her failure.

"However." Lelouch's voice became sincere as he remove the mask to reveal his face. "I am very glad that you're still alive. You are very important to me. If I ever lost you, then I would never be the same. You are one of the best Knightmare pilots that I have ever seen." Lelouch asked encouragingly, "Do you know why you lost today?"

"Experience, and numbers." Kallen answered hesitantly. "I lost because I was less familiar with my frame than Cornelia's Knights were, and they outnumbered me."

Lelouch nodded. "The Glaston Knights are great soldiers and Guilford, the one who defeated you, is one of the best out there. You were at a slight disadvantage in the performance of your Knightmare. Cornelia's Knights all have top of the line fifth generation Gloucesters. You however were fighting in a mass-produced, standard Sutherland Kallen. Despite your frame being heavily upgraded, its base performance is still lower than a Glouchester. The specialized lance and Buzz saw shield harken gave you a slight edge in terms of weapons, but the Gloucesters still had the advantage in speed and maneuverability. Despite this you managed to destroy seven of the Glaston Knights and damage one of Cornelia's personal knights that is known as the Spear of the Empire. Do you know why you were able to do this Kallen?"

Kallen simply shook her head in response, her tears all but gone. Her tongue felt like it was suddenly made of lead.

"Your skill." Lelouch stated firmly. "You are better than they are. Despite having those advantages you systematically destroyed them. The only reason you lost to Guilford is because their knightmares were slightly faster than yours so each time you destroyed one, they managed to damage you Knightmare a little until your Knightmare couldn't keep up with the strain. So once I manage to get you a better frame you will be able to wipe the floor with all of them."

Kallen's sapphire eyes widened as she realized what Lelouch was saying to her. "I would have won easily?" Kallen asked sounding slightly disbelief.

"Yes." Lelouch said to Kallen with a grin. "You didn't fail me. The only way you could ever fail me is if you die. You are too valuable a pilot to lose. Machines can be rebuilt, but humans can never be replaced. So just promise that you will not do anything too reckless and watch your back."

"I promise." Kallen said nodding. "I am sorry about the Knightmare though. Rai put so much effort into it and I let it be destroyed."

"Do not worry, Rai is probably more interested in the data that he got from your battle on how his weapons worked. Plus, he loves messing with machines so building that was a nice distraction from his other projects." Lelouch said comfortingly. "With all the data from how the buzz saw and electric lance worked, he will probably be able to finish the knightmare weapon he has been working on."

"Alright, but I still want to apologize to him." Kallen said.

"Rai does not tend take apologies or complements very well. He is not a very people person. Plus he might be asleep when we get back." Lelouch explained. "Anyway, we really should probably be leaving now."

"Your right we should go, but it is the middle of the day so he couldn't be asleep." Kallen said.

"The more time you spend around Rai the more you get used to his strange sleeping habits." Lelouch said before reaching out a gloved hand to Kallen. "Let's go," he said to her gently.

Kallen grabbed his hand and he pulled her up. They then began to walk down the sewage tunnel back towards the Settlement.

* * *

**Ashford Academy**

_Zero and Lotus and Tempest_

Once Lelouch and Kallen got back to the secret base, they went to go see Rai. They found him working on a computer designing what looked to be a giant katana but before they could get a good look at it, Rai hid the window that he was working on.

"No sneak peeks, Nunnally. I thought I told you it was a surprise." Rai said without turning around.

"Rai, it is Kallen and Lelouch." Lelouch said calmly.

"Oh, well how did the operation go?" Rai asked without looking around.

"We lost due to the cowardice of the Yamato Alliance." Lelouch said with Kallen flinching when he said lost. "It is ok, it was not your fault Kallen. We were having to retreat anyway." Lelouch whispered to Kallen as he put his hand on Kallen's shoulder.

"Thanks, Lelouch." Kallen whispered back.

"Kallen, Lelouch stop flirting and pay attention." Rai said, still without turning around. "Now, Kallen how did the experimental weapons perform."

"The lance was amazing and very effective if I made even a glancing blow. However when it was destroyed it took out the arm it was in and if it was closer to the body of the Knightmare would have been destroyed by it. The buzz saw shield harken worked as a close range weapon and a shield, but when I tried to use it a slash harken it did not pierce enough into the Knightmare and only left a long gash. I am sorry about letting them be destroyed though." Kallen explained.

"No need to apologize. Now I know what the weaknesses in my designs, I can fix them. Plus those were the prototype versions. I see that I still need to fix the stability issue on the lance and I guess that using a buzz saw as a slash harken was not my best idea, but the data gathered from your battle will help me finish my greatest weapon yet!" Rai said spinning around in his chair while getting more excited.

"You mean the sword that was on your computer screen when we came in?" Kallen asked.

Rai quickly deflated and gave both of them a flat look. "You saw that?" Rai asked. They both nodded. "Please do not tell Nunnally what I am working on, I was going to impress her with it when it was done."

"Okay we won't tell Nunnally." Kallen said excitedly. "But I want to be the one to test it."

"Great with the way you piloted in Saitama, I will have it complete in no time." Rai said.

"Alright well Kallen and I are going up now. Rai don't stay up too late." Lelouch said grabbing Kallen's hand and guiding her into the elevator.

As both Lelouch and Kallen got on the elevator, they heard Rai yell "Stay up late? I just got up."

Once the elevator doors fully closed Lelouch put his head in his hands and groaned.

"Lelouch, are you ok?" Kallen asked.

"I am fine, just frustrated by Rai's ridiculously random sleeping pattern. If I did not have Sayoko sleeping near Nunnally to make sure that she did not stay up late, she would have the same sleeping pattern as Rai by now." Lelouch said sighing.

"Where did you meet Rai anyway? You told me about how you met Suzaku, but where is Rai from?" Kallen asked curious about the inventive silver haired boy.

"I met Rai several weeks after the invasion ended. I was on a training trip with Sayoko in the mountains, when we stumbled on him unconscious in a forest. I remember Sayoko making me carry him all the way back to our campsite. When he woke up he did not have any memories of what his life was like before waking up in the forest." Lelouch explained.

"Wait, Rai has amnesia?" Kallen asked.

"No, Rai had amnesia but eventually he regained mostly all of his memories. He remembers most of his life except for what he was doing in the war." Lelouch explained. "So I asked Sayoko to allow me to bring Rai back with us to Ashford Academy. When we got back I set up a bed and some stuff for Rai in the underground tunnels that are now Rai's lab. Later I found out he had an aptitude for machine building and technology, so I built him a lab so he could create Knightmare Frames for preparation to fight Britannia. Eventually, Nunnally got involved with building the Knightmares since she is also good at building them. I would have to say he is Nunnally's best friend since they spend so much time together."

The elevator door's opened up and Lelouch and Kallen walked out.

"Alright you should head back to the dorms and rest, you are probably exhausted from all that activity." Lelouch said as they walked out of the library.

"Alright, and Lelouch." Kallen said slightly blushing.

"What is it Kallen?" Lelouch asked as he stopped and turned his head toward Kallen.

"Thanks for trusting me and for not stealing my first kiss." Kallen said before leaning over and giving Lelouch a kiss on the cheek.

"Alright, I will see you later Lelouch." Kallen said blushing heavily as she walked away.

Lelouch was so shocked that he just stood there for a second touching his hand to his cheek.

"Well that was unexpected." Lelouch said aloud before walking back towards his room.

He did not notice a beautiful blond down the hallway smiling with a Cheshire grin. "Well this is very interesting. Now I finally have some dirt on you Lulu." Milly said while grinning the whole time. Both Lelouch and Kallen felt a chill creep down their spines and shuddered. Neither of them knew what was going to happen but could tell that it was not going to be good.

* * *

**The Next Day After School**

**Student Council Room**

_Zero and Lotus and White Knight and Lovestruck and Innocents_

All of the members of the student council were sitting in the student council meeting room waiting for the meeting to start, while silently wondering what Milly had called them for.

"Alright people in three days the council will be going on a trip to the resort, so I need to know who is going." Milly announced once she was sure everyone was paying attention.

Suzaku was the first to respond. "Sorry madam president, I have military duty that day so I cannot come." Suzaku said apologetically.

"Oh, that is too bad Suzaku. Anyone else not able to come." Milly asked looking at Lelouch.

"I will not be able to come that day Milly because I have an appointment that day." Lelouch said subtly motioning to Kallen with his hand.

"Milly, I have a doctor's appointment so I will not be able to come." Kallen said after noticing Lelouch's hand motions.

Milly sighed. "Lelouch, how many time have I told you to call me madam president during meetings. You even got your girlfriend to call me by my name instead of my title." Milly said with a small smile on her face.

"Yeah Lelouch, you and Kallen need to call madam president by her title." Shirley said before pausing for a second then turning bright red and yelling "Kallen is not his girlfriend! Milly stop that!"

"I guess this is not the best time to tell you that I cannot come because of my job." Rivalz said sheepishly.

"Rivalz, this is not the time!" Shirley yelled at Rivalz before turning to Kallen. "Kallen, I thought you said that you and Lelouch were not dating." Shirley said tearing up.

"We are not, I told you that yesterday. Milly, stop insinuating things. It is bad enough that you tried to make me and Lelouch kiss." Kallen said blushing.

"Oh? If kissing Lelouch on the cheek was so bad, the why did you do it again in the hallway yesterday." Milly asked smirking.

"Wait a minute. Lelouch, you said that you and Kallen were not dating." Rivalz asked accusingly.

"Lelouch, you have a girlfriend?" Suzaku asked surprised.

"We are not dating, Rivalz. Kallen was just thanking me for not taking her first kiss and coming up with the idea to get out of it and Suzaku I do not like the fact that you voice was surprised at the fact I could have a girlfriend." Lelouch said in a very calm voice. "Shirley, you need to learn better than to listen to most of what Milly says."

"Oh Lelouch, you wound me so." Milly said while dramatically holding her hand against her forehead.

"But if that is what you want to tell people that is fine for now. So to get back to the matter at hand only Shirley, Nina and I are going. Where is your school spirit?" Milly said looking accusingly at the four people not going on the trip.

"Maybe if you gave us more warning before these events, then there would more people that would show up." Lelouch said unflinchingly.

"Or you could leave school to avoid the party, like you try and do for every single one of my events." Milly said critically.

"Maybe if you did not try to continually make me the center of attention or made them less ridiculous, I would attend them." Lelouch said back.

"Insulting my parties. That sounds like insubordination, Vice President. Next event you have to attend no matter what." Milly said with a broad smile on her face.

"Sure, I will try to attend. Anyway is that all?" Lelouch asked.

"Yes that is all for now. Those of us going on the trip prepare a suitcase." Milly said before smirking. "Everyone else has to do the paper work to apologize for not going on the trip."

This brought a round of groans from those not going on the trip. Rivalz was the first to respond. "Oh come on Madam President, do we have to do it now. I mean the trip is not for three days so we have more time." Rivalz said trying to get out of work.

"GUTS!" Milly yelled making everyone in the room flinch, especially the new members.

"Ah, what was that?" Kallen asked while holding her hands over her ears.

"That is Milly's way of motivating people that try and get out of their jobs in the student council." Lelouch explained before taking several papers out of the pile and beginning to write on them. "So we should do the paper work or she will continue to yell that."

"That is the spirit, Lelouch. Now everyone else get to it." Milly said to everyone in the council. Shirley and Nina ended up helping complete several forms because they required the participants' signature. After an hour they finished the paperwork and all went back to their dorms.

* * *

Authors Note

Out of all my chapters this has been one of the hardest to write because of finals and my muse abandoning me. Updates will continue to be slow until my muse returns, but I will still work on my stories.

James and Harrison are made up names but they are some of Andreas Darlton's adoptive sons that make up the Glaston Knights. I will need to use more than the five introduced by name. Also in this fanfiction the Glaston Knights have more members. To avoid confusion Andreas Darlton will be Darlton and his sons will be addressed by their first name. I actually thought Darlton was his first name when I started watching the series until some of his sons showed up with Darlton in their name. Same with Guilford since most characters are referred to by their first name.

Yes, Kallen 'lost' to Guilford but she had just fought and taken down seven members of Cornelia's Guard before engaging Guilford in a knightmare that she had for a day. No wonder she was defeated by Guilford, but I still count that as a win. Kallen is starting to learn not to over extend herself and gaining more experience as a pilot. Lelouch also learns about Kallen's habit of over extending herself and will help her correct the problem or at least watch for it.

I did not have Kallen use Geass because I have decided to make it non-combat oriented. I don't want to force her to rely on it. I am open to suggestions so P.M. me or review and I will put your name in the next authors note. I have an idea but do not think it fits Kallen that well. I do need Geass idea reviews before I can finish the next chapter so Ideas please.

* * *

Lelouch Vi Britannia commands you, Review!


	8. Hostage Hotel

Early Start: Hostage Hotel

"_Thoughts_"

"Speech"

Action

**Time**

CUSTOMARY DISCLAIMER: I do not, nor have in any way, ever owned anything to do with the original anime or story which my fan fictions are based off of. These stories are written for the sole purpose of entertainment, and not meant to achieve any profit through selling it. Honestly.

I assure you that I do not promote violence against Flamers (I do, however, find it hilarious).

* * *

**Last Time**

"Yes that is all for now. Those of us going on the trip prepare a suitcase." Milly said before smirking. "Everyone else has to do the paper work to apologize for not going on the trip."

This brought a round of groans from those not going on the trip. Rivalz was the first to respond. "Oh come on Madam President, do we have to do it now. I mean the trip is not for three days so we have more time." Rivalz said trying to get out of work.

"GUTS!" Milly yelled making everyone in the room flinch, especially the new members.

"Ah, what was that." Kallen asked while holding her hands over her ears.

"That is Milly's way of motivating people that try and get out of their jobs in the student council." Lelouch explained before taking several papers out of the pile and begining to write on them. "So we should do the paper work or she will continue to yell that."

"That is the spirit, Lelouch. Now everyone else get to it." Milly said to everyone in the council. Shirley and Nina ended up helping complete several forms because they required the participants signature. After an hour they finished the paperwork and all went back to their dorms.

* * *

**Now**

**Ashford Academy**

_Zero and Lotus and White Witch_

Lelouch and Kallen were sitting in Lelouch's dinning room discussing the battle at Saitama while C.C. was eating pizza.

"So, Kallen why didn't you use your geass when you were fighting Guilford?" Lelouch asked.

"My Geass does work when I can't see the persons body." Kallen explained. "Plus it would not have helped against Guilford."

"What is your Geass anyway Kallen?" C.C. asked having finished her second pizza.

"I can see a colorful aura around people that changes color depending on their current emotion. From what I can tell every emotion has a different base color and the color shifts to darker when the intensity increases. Lying is white, rage and anger are red, sadness is blue, happiness is yellow and all others are a combination of these colors." Kallen explained.

"Lying is not an emotion." C.C. teased.

"Yeah well when someone lies their aura flashes white. Also, Lelouch you have a Crimson bird like symbol that appears on your aura when ever you use your power." Kallen said, irritated at being interrupted.

"Alright what is my emotion now." Lelouch asked.

"It is hard to tell, your aura is hidden except for when you experience really strong emotions, like when you are with Nunnally I was able to see wisps of a yellow aura around you." Kallen explained.

"That makes sense, I did make myself immune to Geass so it is interfering with your ability. But what does the bird symbol mean?" Lelouch wondered aloud.

"That is the symbol of Geass." C.C. said surprising both Lelouch and Kallen, causing them both to look at her with shocked expressions on their faces. "What are you two starring at?" C.C. asked.

"That is the first time you have volunteered information without being asked directly." Lelouch said. "Maybe you are starting to open up to us."

"Don't push you luck, boy. The only reason I told you was because you were probably going to ask me anyway or look it up. The people after me know what the symbol look like so searching for it will bring them down here." C.C. explained.

"Keep telling yourself that C.C. but you have taken a liking to us. You have been more open then you were at first." Lelouch teased.

"You are deluding yourself." C.C. said turning her head away and getting up. "I am going to get some more pizza."

After C.C. walked out of the room Kallen turned to Lelouch. "Lelouch how do you stand her?" Kallen asked, still annoyed by C.C.'s teasing.

"Easy, Milly is easily worse so I have developed ways of dealing with her. One way is to ignore it but with people like Milly and C.C. it only encourages them to try harder. The best way is to go on the offensive and tease them back." Lelouch explained.

"Now can you contact Ohgi and tell him to meet me by the corner of Halison and Andros road in two days and to bring the rest of your group." Lelouch asked.

"Alright, what for though?" Kallen asked.

"I managed to get us a mobile base that we can use for transportation." Lelouch explained.

"Okay I will call him now so he can gather the rest of the group." Kallen said as she got up and walked out of the room.

* * *

_Lotus and The Teacher and The Fool_

After Kallen walked out of the room she pulled out her phone and dialed Ohgi's number. After several rings someone picked up.

"Yello, Tamaki's pizza service how can I help you?" Tamaki said in a drunken voice.

"Tamaki, get the fuck off the phone and put Ohgi on for me." Kallen growled angerly into the phone.

"Screw you Kallen you got a..." Tamaki started to say before sounds of a struggle came through the phone.

"Hello Kallen." Ohgi said over the phone while Tamaki cursed in the background. "You needed something?"

"Yeah, Zero contacted me and said for our resistance group to meet him at the corner of Halison and Andros road in two days. He has a new base for our group to use." Kallen explained to Ohgi. "What are you guys doing now?"

"We were celibrating being able to evacuate most of the civilians from Saitama. Who ever Zero is he has great intel gathering skills. Do you know how he managed to know about the attack in advance?" Ohgi asked.

"No, he just said he has sourses that are very reliable." Kallen said making a note to ask Lelouch just who his sourses are.

"Alright, I will make sure everyone comes. Until then stay in school, Naoto would want you to." Ohgi said in a caring voice.

"I will don't worry about it." Kallen said before hanging up.

* * *

**Two Days Later**

* * *

**Train**

_Lovestruck and The Inventor and Innocents_

A bullet train from Tokyo was currently headed to Lake Kawaguchi; inside the train were three members of the Student Council of Ashford Academy.

"WOW!" Shirley exclaimed, the cheerfull orangette looking out the window of the speeding bullet train excitedly as the Tokyo settlement zoomed past "I've never left the Tokyo Settlement before, this is my first time!" Shirley commented with a small smile and an excited tone.

"I'm sure you wish Lelouch had come along, right?" Milly teased, smiling coyly at the girl from her seat across from her "Then it would've been both your first times." She laughed as the orangette turned red from the implied meaning "Don't be so shy! Tonight we can stay up all night talking! Let's talk about which guys we like at school!" Milly then smile like a chemise cat, sending shivers down both her companion's spine.

"If that's the case you probably have a lot to talk about." Shirley muttered quietly.

"Who can say?" Milly then smile before shifting her gaze on Nina, whom was nervously holding her hands in her lap.

As the train entered a tunnel, Nina gasped in fright as both her hands clenched her skirt fearfully. Milly tried to calm her down by holding one of her hands. "Nina, it's alright, there are a lot of Britannians in Lake Kawaguchi, so security is fine." Milly assured her xenophobic friend. "Don't be afraid, it's not the Ghettos."

"Yes, but," Nina struggled with her words as she shiver in fright.

"We will be with you the whole time, we won't leave your sight for a second." Milly added tenderly as Nina calm down a bit.

"Thanks." Nina said calming down.

* * *

**Mobile Trailer**

_Zero and Lotus and The Teacher and The Fool and Miracle Man_

Lelouch, currently dressed as Zero, sat on the couch in the large truck now serving as the base for his group. Kallen and Ohgi, and several of the important members of the former terrorist group had come. Earlier, before the meeting, he had made sure to learn who was coming, and he glanced from one to the other, listing their names in his head. '_Tamaki, Sugiyama, Inoue, Minami, and Yoshida._' He recognized a few of them from when he had met Kallen on the train. The people in question, were standing at the door looking awestruck.

"What're you waiting for, a written invitation?" Zero asked, the teen donning the guise of Zero once more as he reclined on the couch, looking on as Kallen, Ohgi, and the rest of the gang from Shinjuku, filed into the newly delivered trailer "Come in. As of now, this place will be our hideout."

"So you think joining up with us is a good idea?" Ohgi asked, looking around at the slick, custom interior of the trailer in awe. Whoever Zero was, he had some serious connections, and the cash to back them up.

"But of course." Zero assured the man, the shin-obi smiling softly behind his mask as the rebels once again voiced their enawed approval of their new hideout/transport "Loyal comrades are hard to find after all."

"Holy cow." one rebel said.

"What is this place." Tamaki said shocked.

"Its huge! Check it out, its even got a second story." Yoshida said as he looked up the stairs.

"Pardon my curiosity…" Ohgi began, the leader of the rebels looking over at their masked benefactor "But would you mind telling me how you got your hands on this?"

"You catch on quick Ohgi." Zero applauded, nodding his head towards the man "Let's just say I 'borrowed' it from a rather libertine nobleman."

"You asked for it, just like that?" Ohgi asked shocked..

"Don't worry, no strings attached." Zero said disarmingly as all the rebels got on board.

"Wow…" Tamaki gaped, the hot headed rebel looking around the interior of the trailer in awe, having never set foot inside anything this lavish in his life "Hey there really is a second floor!"

"On the other hand, no one would expect us in something like this." Kallen said, silently impressed with Lelouch's connections.

"It even has a TV." Minami said as he sat down on the couch across from it, and picked up the remote to turn it on.

"There's TV too?!" Tamaki cackled, the enthused rebel sticking his head between the gaps in the banisters to gape at the wall mounted television screen with a grin, only to blink as the news report came on.

As it came on, a man on screen asked "_How are things looking at the scene?_"

"What is this?" Kallen asked as she stepped nearer the television.

The scene on the screen changed, and it now featured a woman and in the background was a large building in the center of a lake. "I'm here in front of the lake Kawaguchi Convention Center Hotel. The hotel jackers have identified themselves as members of the Japan Liberation Front." the reporter on screen said.

"What is happening?" Ohgi asked.

"Members of the Sakuradite Allocation Meeting, most notably Chairman James, were taken hostage, as well as several tourists and hotel employees." The screen changed to show a room with people sitting on the ground with guns pointed at them. "This footage was taken by the perpetrators. In it, you can clearly see Chairman James, including some students."

Kallen gasped slightly and said "From the student council..."

Zero was shocked by the news as well. "_Todoh sensei, how could you let your men do something like this. Not only is it morally wrong, it will not accomplish anything. Cornelia would rather just destroy the hotel and blame it on the terrorists rather than to give into their demands. Why hasn't she though, the only reason Cornelia would stop would be... could it be?" _Lelouch thought with his eyes widening at his last thought.

"The leader of the group claims to be Lieutenant Colonel Kusakabe of the now defunct Japanese Military." The reporter continued.

At the Japanese Liberation Front base Todoh slammed his hand on his knee. "That imbecile!" Todoh yelled.

"Sakuradite, an essential component in the manufacture of high temperature superconductors is a vital strategic resource that directly affects world security. Area 11 is the largest producer of this material, providing seventy percent of the worlds total supply. Here at the yearly gathering" the reporter continued before Lelouch muted the news.

* * *

**Lake Kawaguchi**

_The Prideful and The Inventor and Lovestruck_

"I am Kusakabe of the Japan Liberation Front." Kusakabe announced to the hostages while holding his sword. "We are making this stand for Japan and our countrymen. Even though you are not soldiers you are still britannian and our oppressors."

At this Nina cowered and Milly held Nina closer.

"Sit still, be quiet, and you will be you don't." Kusakabe left the threat hanging.

"Lulu." Shirley whispered while panicking.

* * *

**Mobile Trailer**

_Zero and Lotus and The Teacher and The Fool_

"So they made their move." Tamaki said

"They are the biggest anti-Britannian group here in Japan and now their pride is hurt." Ohgi said.

"Because of us." Minami said.

"I don't know whether to feel glad or sorry about this." Inoue mumbled loudly. On one hand, they were Britannian and on the other hand, they were just civilians.

"Forget that, they're all going to end up dead." Tamaki announced.

"We are going to save them." Zero announced, stopping the rambling of his comrades.

"Wait, what?" Tamaki asked, startled at those words.

Zero stood up and approach the TV set. "I found it strange that Cornelia has yet to level the building. After researching about her military records, she is not known to negotiate with terrorist, she flat out kills them." Zero said knowingly. "That said, there is someone in there that is preventing Cornelia from moving decisively and I think I know who." Zero then glanced at his allies through his mask. "Now, who is the most important person in your lives?"

The rebels look at him funny at that question. Was he serious? Only Kallen was the one who figured out the relevance of that question.

"You mean to tell me that the most important person in Cornelia's life is in that building?" Kallen asked, startled at the sudden revelation.

Zero could only nod. "Princess Euphemia li Britannia is amongst the hostages." Zero stated.

"A PRINCESS," Tamaki yelled out loudly. "Holy crap, Kusakabe hit the jackpot."

"No, he is in the process of dooming this country to oblivion." Zero corrected him as the rebels once again focus their gaze on him. "The reason why Cornelia is so motivated in purging Japan of all things terrorist is because of the death of several of her siblings in this country, Clovis who I killed and the vi Britannia Siblings who died during the war, the three of them died in this country." Zero said before stoping as he waited for the shocked outbursts to die down. "Now, she is already destroying Resistance Cells from left to right at that fact, if her own blood sibling died in this country what do you think she will do?" Zero asked them, his voice rising with each word.

"She will go ballistic." Tamaki supplied.

"Surprisingly, you are right for once Tamaki." Zero said ignoring Tamaki's outcries. "Cornelia will go on a warpath and she will tear this country apart to annihilate every terrorist group in the country without a care about who will get caught on the crossfire, which will mean countless Japanese civilian casualties." Lelouch then pointed at Lieutenant Colonel Kusakabe on the screen. "This fool is in the process of opening Pandora's Box and he is not even aware of it." Lelouch stated with disdain as the rebels eyes widen at realization.

"So when do we move?" Kallen asked, eagerly wanting to save her friends.

"As soon as possible," Zero replied as he looked at them throught his mask. "Kallen, take someone with you upstairs. In the room in the far right, you will find several boxes. Get them down here and open them up." Zero ordered. Kallen nodded and obeyed him wordlessly.

She, Tamaki, and Ishida came down from the second floors, holding several boxes. They open one of the many boxes only to find some clothes. "Clothes?" Tamaki asked.

"Uniforms." Zero corrected, drawing blank stares from the rebels, even as Ohgi went up to help Kallen carry the boxes down "We are no longer a simple gang of terrorists, we are freedom fighters, champions of justice that strive to correct the corruption that had plagued our world for so long." He nodded at the stunned redhead "As such, I thought it would be necessary to have us dress the part."

"Hey! This shit's custom!" Tamaki noted, the hotheaded rebel looking over the black jacket he'd been handed with a look of amazemed approval, turning it over in his hands

"I had them made so maneuverability wouldn't be an issue." Zero assured them, watching as the rebels marvelled over their new apparrel "Looking good wouldn't do you any good if it impeded your movement."

"Hey, there's Kevlar in here too!" Inoue exclaimed, her eyes wide, running her hands over the inside of the jackets in amazement, drawing looks of wonder from the others as they realized this was true "Not really thick, but it should handle small arms fire."

"It is the same issue that Britannian commanders wear under their dress uniforms." Zero assured her, causing several rebels to gape at him in surprise "I only get the best for my comrades. And I expect no less in return."

"Kallen," Zero called out, catching the attention of the red hair beauty.

"Follow me; I'll give you your uniform." Zero said as he offered his hand to her.

"You mean Kallen won't be wearing this?" Tamaki asked with a confused tone.

"No, Kallen is our ace so she will be wearing a customized out fit so she will be memorable." Lelouch explained to the other rebels.

"Isn't this a bit too much," Ohgi voiced his awe as Zero stopped from his tracks. "I mean, we're just resistance fighters."

Zero turn to look at them, his hand raise upright. "Don't degrade yourself Ohgi, we are no longer a meager Resistance cell." Zero uncurled his hands and now, the posture of his hand gave him the image of him holding the world in the palm of his hand. "We are… what we are trying to be… what we will become are the Knights of Justice."

While everyone was getting on their uniforms Ohgi decided to talk to their masked leader. "So what's the plan?" Ohgi asked, looking up from trying to slip into his own uniform, the women having moved to the upper level to change in the privacy of the rooms up there "We are going to help out?"

"Indeed." Zero intoned, his Geass shining brightly behind the mask as he listened to Shirley's father denounce the terrorists as cowards. "Our enemy is not the people, but the corruption that rules Britannia itself?" he tilted his helmet towards the screen "Kusakabe has involved civilians in his struggle. I can not tolerate such actions."

* * *

**G-1**

_Warrior Queen_

"All bridges connecting to the hotel with the, exception of the main one, have been destroyed. Our attempted approaches from the air and water have been unsuccessful. There is only one route left that will allow us to develop a possible hostage rescue plan. The main utilities tunnel running directly beneath the convention center hotel. Basically we would go in through this route, destroy the foundation block, and submerge the hotel. Since the tunnel was also built to handle supply delivery, it should be able to accommodate Sutherlands. Even if the enemy has taken precautions, it should be no problem." One of Cornelia's advisors explained. "They have been using substandard weaponry, so they should have not trouble evading them."

* * *

**Utilities Tunnel**

_The Prideful_

"Enemy detected. As expected they are moving through the underground tunnel." One of the Japanese Liberation Front soldiers said.

"Roger that. Raiko secondary start up, both quad linkage legs locked. Super electro magnetic shrapnel cannon voltage confirmed." The leading soldier said.

"I think these guys have Knightmare rifles, spread out and break their ranks." The britannian soldier in charge of the operation said.

"Super electro magnetic shrapnel cannon fire." The leading soldier said as he fired the cannon. The cannon fired a shell that opened and released a payload of metal bullets.

"What!" The britannian soldiers yelled as they were blown to oblivion.

"In one shot!" A soldier with Kusakabe yelled.

"It worked." Another said.

"The raiko was a complete success." The soldiers in the Raiko said.

"What do you think of that Britannian pigs." Kusakabe said smirking. "How do you like our Japanese spirit. The Japanese are not dead and we will prove that right here."

* * *

**G-1**

_Battle Queen_

"Wiped out!" Dalton yelled.

"Yes, it seems as though the modified some glascows into a linear cannon." One of Cornelia's advisors explained.

Cornelia cursed silently, her teeth clenching as she heard the reports that the Sutherlands that she send via supply tunnel were wiped out by makeshift linear cannon that the terrorist stationed down there beforehand. She was unaware that terrorist posses such a weapon.

"What do we do know, if we release the Political Hostages like what they demanded…"

"We cannot show weakness to terrorists." Cornelia shouted indignantly, glaring holes at the advisor that dared suggest that. "If we give in to their demands we are only legitimizing terrorism."

"But Milady…" Guilford murmured, the Spearhead of the empire leaning in close to his master's ear, his bespectacled face lined with concern as he urged her to remember that it wasn't just civillian lives at stake here "Princess Euphemia…"

"Yes, I know, believe me I know." Cornelia whispered, her regal expression had a bit of discomfort written all over it.

"Thus far it appears that none of them had discovered her identity. If they did, they would surely use her as a bargaining chip." Darlton stated professionally even thought in the inside, he was worried sick.

* * *

**Ashford Academy**

_White Witch_

"Yes, yes I under stand. I'll do well this time. I will try to look out for him but I am not his guardian." C.C. spoke into thin air. "Besides, he takes after you and doesn't like me getting involved until I explain my reasons." C.C. paused before saying "No I don't plan on telling him any time soon but I may have to if I want to keep an eye on him."

* * *

**Lake Kawaguchi**

_White Knight and The Tinkerer_

"Can the special core offer any assistance in the rescue operation?" Suzaku asked his voice lace with worry.

"I've already asked them, but we're in an irregular unit and they don't acknowledge our chain of command." Lloyd said as he threw the rock on the lake. "Besides…"

"It's too risky to entrust the operation to an eleven, is that right?" Suzaku said, finishing the Earl's statement.

"Yet I'm sure you're aware how Princess Cornelia is very discriminating about Britannians and numbers." Lloyd exclaimed with a small frown.

"So the Japanese are still not accepted in your structure." Suzaku exclaimed with a frown.

"If that were true, then what point would there be of even having an honorary Britannian System." Cecile mumbled with a disappointed tone.

* * *

**Night Time**

* * *

_White Knight and The Tinkerer_

Suzaku frowned, sitting in the cockpit of the now completely restored Lancelot, itching to leap into the fray and rescue the hostages, but under orders from Cornelia to remain on standby until further notice.

"It seems even with my recent promotion, she doesn't want to put her faith in an 'honorary' Britannian." He muttered, grimacing at the looks he'd received from her personal troops as he'd walked past. "Not that I blame her, I may have been acquitted of Clovis' murder, but the fact remains that Zero stepped in to rescue me, embarrassing the Britannian forces in the process." Suzaku said to himself.

"Some of the hostages are your friends from school aren't they?" Cecile noted, the blue haired woman working on the Lancelot's systems, keeping it prepped for launch at a moment's notice. "They're still negotiating, don't worry."

"I have faith in the system." Suzaku informed her, looking out at the captured resort through Lancelot's optical sensors, magnifying the view as best he could. "I prefer the logic of systems to individual emotions."

Cecile frowned sadly, looking at the young pilot in concern, only to start as he sat up straight, a look of shocked horror on his face.

"Oh god…" Suzaku breathed, his face paling as he watched several uniformed terrorists lead a bound hostage onto the roof of the tower "Don't do it-!"

The pilot's pleas went unheard, his scream echoing over the water as the terrorists pushed the desperate hostage off the roof, all on live camera, for the public to see.

* * *

_Battle Queen and The Prideful_

"Our demands have gone unanswered." Kusakabe said, his hands resting on his katana as he glared out at Cornelia and her men "Therefore we will throw one hostage from the roof every thirty minutes until our terms are met. For the sake of the hostages, the negotiations better be in good faith."

"Barbarians." Cornelia cursed, glaring at the pandemonium that had kicked off around the shoreline, as the public freaked out over this latest turnout. The purple haired Viceroy rose from her chair, Dalton and Guilford flanking her as she made her way to the Gloucester hangar.

"Milady, should we use force?" Dalton asked, the scarred Knight and founder of the Glaston Knights walking a step behind his master, his face, and that of an equally troubled Guilford, set in a mask of resolve.

"We should only assume that course of action after we've confirmed the safety of Princess Euphemia." Guilford countered, causing Cornelia to flinch ever so slightly, gritting her teeth in concern for her beloved sibling.

"Viceroy!" a soldier cried out, coming out of a side corridor at a run "It's Zero!" he exclaimed, halting the trio in their tracks "We just received a message from Zero! He's advancing on the bridge as we speak!"

'Zero?' Cornelia muttered, the purple haired Viceroy's brow furrowing in confusion, as Guilford and Dalton stared at the man in shock, her hand coming to her chin as she though this turn of events over carefully 'What is HE doing here? Is he a part of this somehow?'

"Guilford, Dalton, come with me!" the woman ordered, whirling round and marching towards the Hangar "We're going to see what Zero wants."

* * *

_The Scribe_

"What! What do you mean that van three was stolen by Zero. What the hell was Gibson doing at the time." Diethard asked.

"He said that when he realized what was happening it was too late." One of the reporters said.

"Then were is van three now?" Diethard asked.

"Heading straight toward the military." The reporter said, causing Diethard to look up in shock.

_"Zero what is your plan?"_ Diethard thought to himself.

* * *

_Zero and Battle Queen_

'_Having your troops stand aside_.'Zero mentally noted, watching through his visor as Cornelia's troops let the pilfered camera van past, only to file in behind it in a steady file '_Letting me pass to corner me…seems you are not the type to forgive and forget.'_

Once they had reached the bridge to the hotel, the van stopped due to the three Gloucester Knightmares blocking it's path.

"ZERO!" Cornelia called out, her customized, horned Gloucester pulling up in front of the newsvan, flanked by Guilford and Dalton, all three of their purple mechs wielding their trademark Lances.

"Cornelia." The masked revolutionary greeted, one gloved hand coming out from under his cloak to his cover his chest as he bowed at the woman, who exited her Knightmare to glare at him , hand on her firearm "As charming as ever is see." Zero said sarcastically.

"What are you doing here, Zero?" Cornelia demanded, her features fixed in a suspicious scowl as she locked gazes with the man that had defeated her Knights at the ghetto "Are you siding with the Japan liberation front? Or are you here to 'help' us? Regardless our concerns take priority over yours at the moment. So for the death of my half brother Clovis, I shall take my revenge right here and now." Cornelia said as she pulled out her gun and pointed it at Zero.

"Cornelia, which would you chose. Clovis who is dead or Euphemia who is alive?" Zero asked, causing Cornelia's calm face to change to one of surprise. "_Perfect, my suspicions were correct. You have not change a bit, dear sister. You always doted on sweet little Euphemia, so you won't take aggressive action or you will risk her_." Zero thought.

Cornelia's eyes widening, along with Dalton and Guilford's, as that information had been so heavily secured even the troops didn't know about the sub-viceroy's predicament, the trio noting that Zero had spoken not through the speakers, but directly to them "It is within my power to save Euphemia for you, Cornelia."

Cornelia faltered, her military discipline battling with her heart as she gazed into the reflective face of Zero's mask, trying to discern whether the man was lying. "_There's no way he could pull it off_." She thought, biting her lip to reaffirm her resolve on the issue "_Any attempt to extract her would only put Euphie in danger!"_

"_But he purposely avoided mentioning her name on the airwaves_." She noted, looking at the vigilante analytically. "_He made certain that only I, Dalton and Guilford, heard what he said, in case the airwaves were being monitored."_

Zero had pulled off the impossible before, as the incidents in Shinjuku and Saitima, not to mention Kururugi's rescue, could all attest to. It was like the man had the luck of the devil combined with his own strategic mind.

Without a word, the Witch of Britannian moved her Gloucester to the side, Guilford and Dalton following her example, though they regarded her with confusion as she did so, leaving room for Zero, still perched atop the news van, to pass through the blockade.

* * *

_Lotus and The Teacher and The Fool_

"That was pretty ballsy…" Tamaki muttered, the redhead rebel wiping cold sweat off his brow as they drove on towards the center, past the armed Knightmares "One wrong move and Cornelia's knights would be picking us off their lances."

"Zero's something else." Ohgi muttered in agreement, sitting crouched over, his hands clasped before him to ward of the trembling in his bones "I couldn't have stood before that woman and said those things."

"What do you think he said when he turned the microphone off?" one of the others asked, looking over the recording of the conversation in wonderment "Whatever it was it REALLY rocked Cornelia for a loop."

"Who cares…" Kallen muttered, biting her lip in a combination of eagerness and nerves as she pulled up in front of the center, several armed guards coming out to meet them "We're on."

* * *

_The Prideful_

"What! Zero is here?" Kusakabe asked surprised.

"Yes sir. He just came past the Britannian Military forces." One of the reporting soldiers replied.

"Very well. Send he up, I wish to speak with him." Kusakabe said grinning.

* * *

_Battle Queen_

"Viceroy, what are we doing." Dalton asked.

"I believe we can stall some time until the next hostage is executed. So this is our chance. We can hit them both at the same time." Cornelia said grinning. "Zero there is nowhere to run now."

"Should we begin making preparations of our own?" Guilford asked, only to receive a grim nod from the Viceroy.

* * *

_White Knight and The Tinkerer_

"Wonderful, I would like to thank you for that order. We've got the green light!" Lloyd cheered, the androgynous scientist giving a thumbs up to the antsy Suzaku, who'd been fidgeting in his seat ever since the first hostage had been executed. "Seems Viceroy Cornelia's getting impatient," he added, tone suggestive "so she wants Lancelot to charge straight in and take out the Linear cannon in the tunnel."

"Wait a minute, you mean they are using Suzaku as a decoy to make an opening?" Cecile asked.

"Yep, seems like they will use the confusion to send in the royal guard." Llyod said bluntly.

"Okay then." Suzaku muttered, the recently promoted warrant officer pulling on the last part of his jumpsuit, tugging the memory material on as he settled into the cockpit of the experimental Frame "We finally have a chance to help."

"But, Suzaku..." Cecile started to say.

"Miss Cecile if this will help save lives then I am fine with it." Suzaku said cutting Cecile off. The Lancelot was then loaded onto the Knightmare lowering system and fully activated.

"Alright then here is your mission. The hostages are located on the hotel's middle floor and are believed to be locked inside a food storage room. The advanced weapon Z-01 Lancelot will use the utilities tunnel to move under the hotel. Once there your goal is to destroy the foundation block submerging the hotel. The area with the hostages should hold out for eight minutes. During that time, hostage rescue teams will move in and secure the hostages and mop up any remaining terrorists. You will be using the VARIS to destroy the foundation. Set the impact rail to anti material level three."Cecile said as the Lancelot was lowered into the access tunnel.

"Be careful in there. Due to the small space the Lancelot will only have a forty seven point eight percent evasion rate. Also be sure to get out of there before the building collapses, it would be bad if that happened again." Lloyd said with a tick mark on his head from remembering a building fall on Lancelot.

"Don't worry I will be careful." Suzaku said, cursing the black Knightmare that did that to him as he got the Lancelot into position.

"Twelve minutes to operation start." Cecile said trying to get both Lloyd and Suzaku's minds off of the Black Knightmare.

* * *

**Hotel**

_Zero and The Prideful_

"So, you have no intention of joining me?" Zero asked.

"Remove that mask and reveal your real face to us, it is disrespectful not to." Lt. Colonel Kusakabe said.

"One of my profession always wears a mask be it a physical mask or a mask of a different personality, but I understand your point. However, I would like to ask you something. What exactly do you expect to accomplish by taking over this hotel?" Zero said

"To gain attention. I want this country and the world to understand that the Japanese are not dead yet." Lt. Colonel Kusakabe declared proudly.

"How stale. Your ideas are obsolete. There is no saving you. How you could have worked under Todoh sensei astounds me." Zero said with disapproval.

"Why you arrogant little.." One of the soldiers started to say but was silenced by Kusakabe.

"What do you mean by that Zero, and why do you call Todoh your teacher?" Kusakabe asked. "Todoh's only student was Suzaku Kururugi and I know that you are not him."

"That is true. I only spent a small time under Todoh but he taught me a great deal about swordsmanship and honor, something you have failed to learn from him." Zero said as he reached up to take off his mask. "I respect him and what he is trying to do by freeing Japan but I cannot stand those that purposefully involve civilians, let alone friends of mine." Lelouch then removed his mask and put it on the table.

"What the, you are a britannian?! Then there is no point in talking anymore Zero!" Lt. Colonel Kusakabe yelled, drawing out his sword and charging upon seeing Zero's face.

"Die!" Lelouch commanded.

Several gun shots rang out and several thuds were heard.

* * *

Author's Note

This chapter was originally going to be the entire hotel jacking scene but it ended up being 13000 words so I divided it into two chapters.

A thanks to Gur40goku for his idea on Kallen's Geass. Based on this idea, I have given Kallen the ability of Absolute Aura. More will be revealed on this geass later. This will be important with Mao. Also thanks to all those who gave me Geass ideas.

Hurray for character development. I got several requests to include C.C. more so added some character development scenes now instead of waiting until Mao showed up.

Lelouch Vi Britannia commands you, Review!


	9. Night of Justice

Early Start: Night of Justice

"_Thoughts_"

"Speech"

Action

**Time**

CUSTOMARY DISCLAIMER: I do not, nor have in any way, ever owned anything to do with the original anime or story which my fan fictions are based off of. These stories are written for the sole purpose of entertainment, and not meant to achieve any profit through selling it. Honestly.

I assure you that I do not promote violence against Flamers (I do, however, find it hilarious).

* * *

**Last Time**

"How stale. Your ideas are obsolete. There is no saving you. How you could have worked under Todoh sensei astounds me." Zero said with disapproval.

"Why you arrogant little..." One of the soldiers started to say but was silenced by Kusakabe.

"What do you mean by that Zero, and why do you call Todoh your teacher?" Kusakabe asked. "Todoh's only student was Suzaku Kururugi and I know that you are not him."

"That is true. However, even though I only spent a small time under Todoh he taught me a great deal about swordsmanship and honor, something you have failed to learn from him." Zero said as he reached up to take off his mask. "I respect him and what he is trying to do by freeing Japan but I cannot stand those that purposefully involve civilians, let alone friends of mine." Lelouch then removed his mask and put it on the table.

"What the, you are a Britannian?! Then there is no point in talking anymore Zero!" Lt. Colonel Kusakabe yelled, drawing out his sword and charging upon seeing Zero's face.

"Die!" Lelouch commanded.

Several gun shots rang out and several thuds were heard.

* * *

**Now**

_Lotus and The Teacher and The Fool_

While Zero was talking to Lt. Colonel Kusakabe, the Black Knights were busy placing C4 explosives in strategic locations throughout the hotel.

"Man, Zero really is prepared for everything." Tamaki said rather loudly causing several of the other resistance members to flinch.

"Tamaki, shut the hell up!" Kallen hissed.

"Hey just because Zero gave you a special costume does not mean you are in charge." Tamaki said angrily.

"No, I am in charge because Zero put me in charge of this group and Ohgi in charge of the other group." Kallen said before holding up her hand for silence. "Now be quiet, I think someone heard us."

"I think I heard something over there, let's go check it out." A voice echoed from down the hallway.

Kallen quickly signaled for everyone to turn off the safeties on their weapons off and aim their weapons at the hallway the voice was coming from.

As two guards run around the corner, Kallen signals for them to open fire. The two guards are quickly killed under the spray of bullets. Kallen then charged around the corner towards the remaining two soldiers. She then put her hand on her sword and cut down the first soldier with a quick draw. She then slashed her sword to the side cutting down the remaining soldier.

"Tamaki, finish planting those explosives." Kallen ordered as she flicked her sword clean of blood and put it back into its sheath. Tamaki hurried and placed the last of the explosives in an air duct. "Alright now we need to get to the meeting point with Ohgi's group." Kallen said before walking off towards the meeting point with her crimson cape fluttering behind her.

"Since when has Kallen been able to use a sword?" Tamaki whispered fearfully to Inoue as most of the group walked after Kallen.

"I think she took kendo classes." Inoue whispered back. "Now shut the hell up."

* * *

_The Princess and The Inventor and Innocents_

When one of the guards walked too close to Nina she panicked and whispered fearfully "An eleven."

"What did you say!?" the man asked, anger in his voice. "We're not Elevens! We're Japanese, damn it!" he said as he aimed his weapon at her.

"Yes, we're aware of that! Just lay off of her!" Milly snapped back in defense of her friend, as Nina held her for protection.

"Then correct her! We're not called Elevens!" The soldier shouted.

"Fine, we will correct her!" Shirley joined in, as another guard approached them.

"How dare you speak to me like that? You three, come with me to the next room, and I'll teach you a real lesson!" The guard shouted. At that, Nina began to cry fearfully.

"Now get up, and come with me!" the guard said as he grabbed Nina by the arm and pulled her up and she let out a scream.

"Stop it!" a girl their age wearing glasses commanded as she stood up.

"Who the hell are you!?" the guard asked as he let go of Nina and pushed her, causing her to fall down.

"I demand that you take me to your leader right now! Understand?" Euphemia demanded.

"What!?" The guard said angrily.

"You're addressing Euphemia li Britannia. The Third Princess of the Britannian Empire." Euphemia said as she removed her glasses. Her statement caused a collective gasp from everyone in the room.

"Are you alright young lady? You haven't been hurt?" Euphemia asked Nina.

Nina was a bit stunned at the moment, but managed to answer her with a "No." She was shocked that a member of the empire's royal family would put herself at risk and reveal herself in a situation like the just to save someone like her.

* * *

**Utilities Tunnel**

_White Knight and The Tinkerer_

"M.E. boost." Suzaku said flipping several switches in the Lancelot.

"Lancelot now launching." Cecile said as Suzaku raced forward.

"Reaction confirmed one enemy knightmare." A Japanese Liberation Front soldier said.

"It moves twice as fast as the others." Another soldier said in a panicked voice.

"So what it will end up like the rest. Super electromagnetic shrapnel cannon, fire!" The lead soldier said.

"I warned you about this Lloyd." Cecile said as she covered her head as wind erupted from the utilities tunnel.

"He doesn't want to play decoy, he is going for the goal." Lloyd said excitedly.

"What it dodged it. No matter. Fire again." The leading Japanese Liberation Front soldier said calmly.

"Yes it can take this level of destructive force." Suzaku said as he deflected the Raiko shots with the blaze luminous on the Lancelot's arms.

* * *

**Hotel**

_Zero and The Princess_

"I've brought the prisoner I radioed about earlier." The leader of the group of soldiers escorting Princess Euphemia explained, pulling off a salute as they neared the large, private office Kusakabe had set himself up in "She claims to be Princess Euphemia Li Britannia."

"A valid claim, it would seem." A cultured and modulated voice noted, the door to the room opening to reveal the masked visage that Euphemia recognized from the recordings of Suzaku's release that had been aired all over the globe.

"Zero…?" Euphemia exclaimed, looking shocked at the sudden apparition of her half-brother's killer standing no more than ten feet away from her standing calmly. "What are you…?"

"Doing. I was just talking with Kusakabe." Zero replied, even as a shocked cry came from behind him, "It would seem that the Lt. Colonel and his men have chosen to perform seppuku after realizing how meaningless this attack was."

"Suicide…?" Princess Euphemia stammered as she looked around, her eyes widening at the sight of the strewn corpses littered about the room, all in a series of poses that made it clear they had been the ones to kill themselves. "But why would he do this?"

"Kusakabe merely took this action to show the world the honor of the Japanese and that the Japanese people are not dead yet." Zero informed her with a sad tone as he watched the remaining soldiers run off while shouting to the other soldiers that it was over. "However, he realized that such futile methods would accomplish nothing. After all, even if his demands were met…how would he and his men be able to escape?"

"Still…" Euphemia noted, looking down at the Lt. Colonel's face which was as solemn in death as it had been in life, her own features taking on a look of pained regret and pity as she held a hand to her chest. "It is such a waste…"

"You show compassion for those that have threatened you?" Zero asked standing right in front of her, startling Euphemia with how close he was standing to her shoulder, his masked gaze locked onto Kusakabe "Even after he killed some of the hostages?"

"Violence is never the answer." Euphemia countered, her face setting in resolve as she looked at the man that killed her brother "If a means can be found to negotiate without the loss of life, then we, as a people, should strive for it-!"

She flinched slightly as Zero's hand came up but instead of striking her, he simply put his gloved hand on her cheek.

"Euphemia," Zero said, his voice laced with a small hint of approval. "Willing to sacrifice yourself for the greater good and for the safety of the commoners. You really are as compassionate, if not even more so than my sources claim."

"What?" Euphemia said surprised and taking a step back.

"Surprised? You shouldn't be. I make sure to do some research on anyone that I might have to face, Sub Viceroy." Zero said while lowering his hand back to his side.

"Why did you kill my brother?" Euphemia asked after gathering her nerve.

"Oh, you mean Prince Clovis. I killed him for many reasons, the main reason being that he order a massacre of an entire ghetto full of people just to cover up his precious Code R project." Zero said with distain. "He even had the nerve to beg for his life after ordering a massacre of civilians."

"What?! Clovis wouldn't do that. Clovis was a kind and gentle person." Euphemia said in disbelief.

"Really? Then you definitely will not believe that your sister almost recreated the massacre in the Saitama ghetto just to lure me out. If I had not gotten most of the civilians out then Princess Cornelia would have had them all killed." Zero said calmly.

"Is that true?" Euphemia asked after standing in silence for a few seconds.

"Yes but do not take my word for it, ask Princess Cornelia yourself." Zero said.

* * *

_Lotus and The Teacher_

"Ohgi you guys ready." Kallen said as her group walked toward Ohgi's group.

"We are ready when you are." Ohgi said.

"Alright then let's move." Kallen said as her group moved forward.

Ohgi turned to the group behind him. "We will be giving Kallen's group cover fire, remember. Aim your rifles high and avoid hitting the hostages." Ohgi instructed as the people behind him nodded before preparing their guns.

* * *

_Lotus and The Inventor and Lovestruck and Innocents_

"This is all my fault…" Nina sobbed as the xenophobic girl held onto Milly for dear life as she tried to fight back her tears, her face buried in the older girl's chest "If I hadn't said anything then she wouldn't be..."

"Don't talk like that." Milly said, shaking the girl gently, hugging her close to her chest. "None of us knew this was going to happen."

"But…!" Nina exclaimed, the girl's eyes filling with tears as she gazed up at the class president desperately, as if begging for this nightmare to end "Because of me, Princess Euphemia…!"

"She'd have been discovered eventually." Shirley assured the girl, even though she was feeling a little uncomfortable with the current situation "I mean someone was sure to notice her. And she's the sub-Viceroy of Area 11, they wouldn't harm such a valuable hostage."

"Don't be so certain." A guard countered looking smug "Lt. Colonel Kusakabe isn't the forgiving type, and he despises Britannia more than anyone." He smirked "I wouldn't be surprised if he roughed her up a bit, just because he can."

"You monster!" Nina railed, whipping round to glare desperately at the offending guard, only to flinch as the man aimed his rifle at her threateningly, Milly and Shirley covering her with their own bodies without a second thought.

"Watch your tongue, bitch." The man warned, his tone mocking "Though maybe we should thank you, you've given us such a valuable hostage after all." His smirk grew decidedly more sinister as he cocked his rifle "In fact with a Princess of the Empire as ransom, what do we need riffraff like you for?"

The hostages gasped, looking around in alarm to find that several other members of the guard had similar expressions on their faces, the group screaming in panic as the rifles came to bear on them, and Shirley's eyes snapping closed in desperation.

_"Lelouch!" _Shirley thought.

The doors burst open, the guards whipping round, only to be gunned down, their rifles falling from nerveless fingers as figures in black jackets and visored hats swept into the room.

'_Those are not military uniforms…' _Milly wondered, looking on in wonder as their rescuers crouched, checking the crowd for injured, some of them finishing off the guards that survived the original wave. '_And those voices are elevens._'

"All hostages secured." One of the rescuers noted before turning to a female with a crimson outfit on with a cape and katana at her hip and spiky red hair beneath her cap, who nodded, before dashing off down the hall "Alright, all of you, follow us to the exits."

"Who are you?" Shirley asked nervously, flinching slightly as the obvious eleven turned his visored gaze towards her even though it was without hostility "You aren't with the military so who are you here with?"

"We are with Zero." The visor-sporting man replied, shocked gasps filling the chamber as the hostages reacted to the vigilante's name, wondering what on earth he wanted "He sent us in to get you people out."

"Zero?" Shirley repeated, the confusion on her face shared by several other hostages, who were talking amongst themselves in disbelief, though some of them seemed hopeful "But why would he...?"

"No time for talk." The man interrupted, his tone strict and to the letter as he gestured towards the door, where two black-clad members were sweeping the hallway "We have to get you out now."

"WAIT!" a desperate voice called out, the group turning to find Nina leaning against Milly, the bespectacled girl looking frantic, torn between her fear of elevens and her concern for a certain, pink haired royal "Princess Euphemia...!"

"Zero said he'd handle her personally." The man stated, his tone reassuring, though several members of the crowd still gasped in shock, and concern, only for him to gesture towards the hallway "Now move it!"

The hostages did so while internally praying for Euphemia's safety, many of them fearing that Zero was about to add another Royal to his hit list.

* * *

_Zero and The Princess and Lotus_

A series of knocks came from the door, Euphemia whirling round just in time to find a woman in a crimson uniform with a sword at her side standing in the doorway, her spiky red hair tamed by the visored cap she wore.

"Zero, all the hostages have been accounted for." The woman reported, pulling herself up straight as she caught sight of how Zero and Euphemia were standing so close to each other, the princess shivered slightly at the anger she sensed in the redhead's hidden stare "What should we do next?"

"Order a withdrawal, Q-1." Zero announced as he stepped past Euphemia in a fluid motion. "Have the hostages evacuated as I instructed, extraction method Gamma."

"Got it." Q-1 nodded, before turning her head to regard the confused Euphemia, who thought she detected a hint of jealousy in the woman's stare. "What about her?"

"I promised her sister that I would return her unharmed and I am a man of my word." Zero stated before turning to Euphemia and extending a gloved hand towards her. "Come, Princess Euphemia." Zero offered, his tone soothing and inviting as he gestured towards the open doorway. "Your transportation has been arranged."

Euphemia blinked looking at the offered hand in surprise, for some reason a fleeting image of the first ball she'd attended rising to the forefront of her mind, where she'd met with her half-brother Lelouch for the first time. The younger boy had asked to dance with her taking her away from the sheltering eyes of Cornelia to twirl her around the hall.

'No…it couldn't be…' Euphemia wondered, even as she placed her hand into his, allowing the masked vigilante to lead her out of the room and down the hall 'Could he really be…?'

* * *

**Utilities Tunnel**

_White Knight and The Tinkerer_

"That thing broke through salvo number five. I can't believe it." One of the Japanese Liberation Front soldiers said.

"Just don't panic. Deploy the quad link free fire arm gun. Batteries too. We will defend this point with our lives." The leading soldier said.

"Miss Cecile, it is time for me to use the VARIS." Suzaku said as he pulled out the VARIS.

"No, you could get killed." Cecile said worriedly.

"There is no room for me to evade. I will risk getting blasted to take the first shot." Suzaku said as he made the VARIS change to level five shot.

"Use maximum output, I don't give a damn if it destroys the guns. We prepared to die defending this spot. Smash em!" The leading soldier yelled.

The Raiko fired a shell at the same time the Lancelot fired the VARIS. The VARIS shot went straight through the shell and into the barrel of the Raiko, causing both to explode. Suzaku then made the Lancelot fire at the support block causing the hotel to begin to sink. Suzaku then had the Lancelot jump out the hole in the roof that was made by the Raiko exploding. However once the Lancelot was out of the tunnel the building exploded.

"My friends!" Suzaku yelled as he made the Lancelot rush towards the falling building.

"Warrant Officer Kururugi don't you dare!" Lloyd yelled as Suzaku charged toward the collapsing building.

* * *

_Scribe_

"What about the cameras in van three?" Diethard asked

"I told you that Zero took them." The other reporter said.

"Well then, let's hope pick up a signal from them." Diethard said.

"_What are you doing Zero? Wasn't this part of your plan? To show us something?"_ Diethard thought.

* * *

_White Knight and The Tinkerer_

As the smoke cleared Lancelot was standing in front the ruble from the fallen building.

"Thank heavens he is alright." Cecile exclaimed happily.

"If he keeps having building's fall on him he won't be." Lloyd said relieved that the Lancelot was fine.

"Lloyd! Now is not the time!" Cecile yelled.

"I couldn't rescue them. They are dead. Damn it, I failed. Not again!" Suzaku said while slamming his hand on the counsel.

Suzaku then saw a large boat floating out of the smoke from the collapsed building.

'What the…' Suzaku wondered, activating the Lancelot's optics and zooming in on the boat. He saw Zero standing on the bow of the boat with several life boats filled to the brim with passengers.

_"My friends are safe. He did it again…" _The teen noted, a disapproving scowl marring his features as he caught sight of the vigilante standing on the prow of a speedboat in the middle of the life rafts. _'Using the wrong methods, he still managed to save everyone…"_

Tearing his eyes away from the masked vigilante's visage, the recently promoted Warrant Officer's eyes widened as he caught sight of a familiar head of pink hair sitting alongside the hostages.

"Euphemia?!" Suzaku yelled out in surprise.

* * *

_Zero and Lotus and White Knight and Battle Queen and The Scribe and Miracle Man and Goddess of Victory and The Tinkerer_

All over the country, a masked man in a black cloak came on screen. "My dear Britannians." Lelouch said in his Zero costume. The screen then changed to show all the hostages from the hotel on rafts in the water. "Have no fear. All of the hostages from the hotel are safe and sound. I, Zero, return them all to you unharmed."

"Of all the brazen audacity." Cornelia hissed as she shivered in anger. "If we attack you those people will quickly become your hostages, won't they?" Cornelia asked rhetorically.

"Kill the video."

"I can't, it won't take my access code."

With a snap of Zero's fingers, the spotlight behind him erupted, revealing several men and women in black uniforms, each of them wearing a visor to hide their identities. Besides Zero was a figure with much more elegant clothing, a woman wearing a red pilot suit with silver shoulder coverings and black boots along with a crimson visor with a gold lens and elegant crimson cape with a silver emblem on the back of it that looked like a trident head.

"We are the Black Knights." Zero announced.

"Black Knights?" Cecile said confused.

"Ironic isn't it. Terrorists calling themselves knights." Lloyd said smiling.

"We of the Black Knights stand with all those who have no weapons to wield! Regardless of whether they be Japanese, OR Britannians!" Zero continued.

In a TV van nearby the hotel, Diethard Reid, a reporter who had been at Zero's debut to the public, was watching and listening to the speech intently.

"The Japan Liberation Front cowardly took innocent Britannian civilians hostage, to endear their pride and then mercilessly executed them. It was a wanton and meaningless act; therefore my knights and I have personally punished them." Zero voiced echoed in the country as most people watching the broadcast was now glued to their sit. "Just as Viceroy Clovis died in my hands for ordering the slaughter of countless unarmed Japanese." That proclamation caused murmurs throughout the assembled crowd.

"We refuse to standby and allow such cruelty to be carried out, and so we made Viceroy Clovis and Lt. Colonel Kusakabe pay for their foolish actions. I will not repudiate battle on a fair and level field, but neither will I tolerate a one-sided massacre of the weak by the strong. The only ones who should kill are those who are prepared to be killed!" Zero emphasized the last words of his statement and even Cornelia agreed to those words, although begrudgingly.

At the Japanese Liberation Front base at Narita, Colonel Kyoshiro Todoh watched the scene on TV. Behind him were his most loyal subordinates, which were called The Four Holy Swords. The feelings about Zero were mixed among them.

"People! Fear us, or rally behind us as you see fit! We, are the Black Knights!"

A girl by the name of Kaguya Sumeragi was another of those watching the speech intently. She had been infatuated with Zero since his debut when he rescued her cousin Suzaku.

"Where ever oppressors abuse their power by attacking, we shall appear again! No matter how mighty, how formidable our foe may be!" Zero said dramatically. "We shall continue to fight for those who cannot fight for themselves." Smoke began to slowly rise out of the yacht and was slowly spreading over the large boat.

'_Knights... For justice._' Ohgi and the rest of the resistance group thought at the same time. They then understood what he meant when he called them the Knights of Justice. Most of the doubts they had had were dispelled as they understood just what Zero had meant. Their doubts about Zero had now vanish as they wordlessly agreed to trust in him with their lives at that moment.

"Those of you with power, fear us!" Zero said as he dramatically moved his left arm to the side, causing his cloak to blow to the side. "Those of you without it, rally behind us!" he said doing a similar action with his right arm. "We, The Black Knights, shall be the ones who stand in judgment of this world!" With that smoke completely covered the boat as the boat quickly moved toward the far side of the lake.

* * *

**Mobile Trailer**

_Zero and Lotus and The Teacher and The Fool._

"A toast." Zero proclaimed while holding up a glass of sparkling champagne as he lounged on the sofa in the Black Knights trailer. "To a successful mission, and the Black Knights debut."

"Kampai!" Tamaki cheered, the rebels mimicking him as they tapped glasses, chatting animatedly amongst themselves as they did so.

The Black Knights had led the police on a fruitless chase, because after they ditched the stolen yacht, which incidentally belonged to the convention center in the first place, they escaped into the sewers, where the Mobile Base was waiting for a quick getaway. Zero had then surprised them all by breaking out some bottles of champagne and proposing a toast to their first successful mission.

Many of them were amazed at the level of faith the man had in them if he prepared such a surprise in advance. Others, like Ohgi and Kallen, simply marveled at how far the man thought ahead.

"But do not let your guard down." Zero warned them, his serious tone cutting through their revelry. "After all, this is but the first of many trials to come." He clenched his fist. "But we shall face them head on!"

Kallen smiled, leaning against the wall on the upper level as the cheers erupted around her, twirling her champagne around in its glass as the revelry picked up again.

"_We've come so far…" _Kallen mused, recalling how, prior to now, every day had been a battle for survival, and a battle they'd been losing badly. "_We would have probably been wiped out in Shinjuku…" _her eyes lowered as she recalled the first time she'd heard Lelouch's voice. _"If it weren't for Lelouch…"_

"Not drinking, Kallen?" a familiar voice asked causing the redhead looking up in surprise to find Zero standing next to her, his own glass untouched "I thought I would come up for some privacy…is there something wrong?"

"Just reminiscing." Kallen admitted, flushing slightly at Lelouch's proximity, before looking away to hide her embarrassment "I mean we couldn't have done any of this without you."

"I merely guided you here." Zero countered, reaching out and holding the Kallen's chin and forcing her to look up at him. "Everything would not have been possible without everyone's efforts."

"Lelouch…" Kallen said flushed, her face lighting up like her hair at the closeness of the man's mask, reaching up with her free hand to touch it, only for Lelouch's own hand to cover hers, halting her in her tracks.

"Not now…" Lelouch muttered. "We can talk more at a later time." Lelouch held up his glass "But for today, why don't you try to enjoy yourself with your friends."

Kallen blinked, before nodding. "Sorry Zero." Kallen said embarrassedly.

"Don't worry about it Kallen. Now come on, enjoy yourself." Zero said.

"Alright." Kallen said before knocking glasses with Lelouch. Kallen then walked down the steps to the party below, a smile on her face.

* * *

**Lake Kawaguchi**

_White Knight and The Tinkerer_

"Great job out there Suzaku!" Lloyd congratulated the young Knightmare pilot. "You really did a number on linear cannon out. We got some great data on the Lancelot."

Suzaku took a bottle of water that Cecile had just handed him, and took a big gulp before saying "I'm just glad that my friends and all of the other hostages were saved." '_Zero... What are you trying to do? You rescued the hostages and even me that one time, but you also killed Prince Clovis..._" he thought.

"Suzaku, why don't you go back to school and spend some time with your friends." Cecile said. "I'm sure they're a little shaken up by everything that happened tonight, and you should let them know that you are glad that they're safe."

"But don't I-" Suzaku started to say.

"Oh, don't worry." Lloyd interrupted. "We're just going to be analyzing the data from tonight's skirmish. We don't need you for that."

"Alright, thank you." Suzaku said with bow before leaving.

* * *

**G-1**

_Battle Queen and The Princess_

On the G-1 base as it made its way back to the Tokyo Settlement, Princess Euphemia sat on the bridge with her sister. Cornelia didn't want to let her younger sister out of her sight after what had happened. Euphemia thought back to her meeting with Zero earlier. There was something about the way he held his hand out to her and the way he talked that was familiar to her, but what was it.

"Euphie is there something wrong" Cornelia asked since they were alone on the bridge.

"It is nothing, it is just something Zero said." Euphemia said quietly as she thought back to what Zero told her.

"What did Zero say Euphie." Cornelia asked interested in any information on Zero.

"Cornelia, did you really order a massacre of civilians just to lure out Zero?" Euphemia asked.

Cornelia was too stunned to speak. _"That snake, he somehow knew that Euphemia would not have approved of what I did and turned her against me." _Cornelia thought.

"No I did not Euphie. I just was taking care of some terrorists in the area." Cornelia said complacently.

"Then you will not mind if I ask some soldiers that were in Saitama what their orders were regarding civilians." Euphemia said suspiciously.

"The civilians were supporting the terrorists in the area." Cornelia said defensively.

"What if the terrorists were just hiding in the ghetto without their knowledge? Cornelia why would you do that?" Euphemia asked in a hurt voice.

"Most of the civilians were not there anyway. Zero somehow knew we were coming and brought in a red specialized frame that destroyed several of the Glaston Knights before Guilford managed to destroy its arms and the pilot ejected." Cornelia said trying to calm Euphemia down.

"Fine I will forgive you if you promise to never do it again. I do not want any civilians harmed." Euphemia said calming down after Cornelia confirmed what Zero said about the civilian death count being very low.

"I promise." Cornelia said honestly.

_"Curse you Zero, you managed to outmaneuver me again."_ Cornelia mentally swore.

* * *

**The Next Day**

* * *

**Ashford Academy**

_Lovestruck and White Knight and Innocents and The Inventor_

The next day, all the talk around Ashford was about yesterday's events. Some was about Zero and the Black Knights, but most about Milly and the others being involved and appearing on TV. "I can't believe the only place I can spend my weekend outside of the house is at school." Shirley grumbled shortly after entering the student council room. With everything that happened, Milly had called everyone together today.

"I know how you feel." Milly agreed walking in with her. "This was not how I was expecting to spend today either." Shirley looked around and saw only Nina, Rivalz, and Suzaku.

"Where are Lelouch and Kallen?" Shirley asked.

"Lelouch said he was taking Nunnally somewhere today so neither of them is in school." Rivalz answered.

"Kallen said she was still feeling sick." Milly answered.

Shirley thought about both Lelouch and Kallen being gone at the same time. "_No no, stop thinking like that. Lelouch is with Nunnally and Milly said that Kallen was sick, so it's not like Lelouch and Kallen are together..._"

"Oh what is going on in that head of yours?" Milly said sighing.

"My darling Lulu is taking Kallen on a trip with his sister, she must be so close to them." Milly said in a teasing tone.

"Madam President! That is not it at all!" Shirley said loudly.

"Then why are you being so defensive?" Milly asked smirking.

* * *

**Mobile Trailer**

_Zero and Lotus and The Teacher and The Fool_

"Have you guys see the news? We're the talk of the town!" Tamaki exclaimed loudly putting the daily paper down.

"Yeah. I haven't seen a single news story today that wasn't about the Black Knights." Sugiyama said.

"And we are on the front in all the papers." Inoue added.

The Black Knights all sat in their headquarters as they waited for Zero's arrival. They were all talking about what happened last night, and throwing their speculations about what they would be doing next. After a few minutes, Zero entered and wasted no time quieting them down.

"Alright, now first things first. We need to assign a few positions in order to keep the operation running smoothly. Ohgi will be the second in commands, Kallen will be our Knightmare Commander and Inoue will handle the finances." Zero said.

"Wait why is Inoue in charge of the finances and why don't I have a position." Tamaki said obnoxiously.

"Ah, I almost forgot. Tamaki, you will be the Head of Base Maintenance." Zero said.

"Alright, wait what does that include doing?" Tamaki asked

"You will be in charge of the base while Kallen, Ohgi, and I are not here and are in charge of making sure that the base does not run out of energy." Zero explained. "You will all start your duties once we get more members. Now, I found a source that will be able to get us a few mass production Japanese modified Sutherlands."

"What?" Minami let out.

"You serious?" Yoshida asked.

"What are they called?" Inoue asked.

"They are called Bikoheika and it will only be a few at first arriving in a several days, but we will eventually be receiving more." Zero said. "Kallen will handle piloting the first one. Kallen they are based on the upgraded Sutherland that you piloted in Saitama."

"Wait, you mean Rai was able to get his hand on more Sutherlands?" Kallen asked.

"Yes, I managed to get equipment to mass produce Knightmare's and Rai has just finished upgrading it so it can mass produce the Bikoheika." Zero explained.

"Wait, who is Rai and how does Kallen know him?" Tamaki asked with several other members thinking the same thing.

"Rai is Zero's Knightmare designer and he had me beta test the Bikoheika." Kallen said.

"You will meet him later when we get the Bikoheika. However, for now we have a job to do. I have done some information gathering, and tonight we will be breaking up an illegal arms deal." Zero said.

"What? We already have to get to work after last night?" Tamaki asked.

"Yes. We need to strike now while the iron is hot and gather public support in order to increase our organizations size." Zero explained. "Now, let's move out."

* * *

**Settlement**

"Did you hear about last night?" one person was asking to another.

"Yeah. The Black Knights showed up at some warehouse and took out a bunch of criminals. I think there was some arms deal going on."

"Hey, the Black Knights showed up again last night."

"I heard. I don't know what happened, but apparently the Black Knights busted some politician who was embezzling money."

"Zero and the Black Knights appeared again! They..."

"Zero is awesome! Him and the Black Knights..."

"Zero really is a knight for justice!

"The Black Knights!"

"Zero!"

By the end of the week, almost everyone in the Tokyo settlement was talking about Zero and the Black Knights. Over the week, the Black Knights showed up again and again, and did just as Zero had proclaimed. They took down various people from criminal syndicates, to terrorists who involved civilians, and corrupt politicians, all fell to the Black Knights. As news of their exploits traveled, support for them grew as well.

* * *

Authors Note

Sorry for the cliffhanger last chapter but this chapter required some editing so I was unable to post it with the other chapter.

Last chapter I have a summer job starting soon so I will probably just work on the story in a big block and after my summer job is over I will edit and post the chapters.

Thank you to JimistheName for pointing out a spelling error in this chapter

* * *

Lelouch Vi Britannia commands you, Review!


	10. Cat Festival

Early Start: Cat Festival

"_Thoughts_"

"Speech"

Action

**Time**

CUSTOMARY DISCLAIMER: I do not, nor have in any way, ever owned anything to do with the original anime or story which my fan fictions are based off of. These stories are written for the sole purpose of entertainment, and not meant to achieve any profit through selling it. Honestly.

I assure you that I do not promote violence against Flamers (I do, however, find it hilarious).

* * *

**Last Time**

"Did you hear about last night?" one person was asking to another.

"Yeah. The Black Knights showed up at some warehouse and took out a bunch of criminals. I think there was some arms deal going on."

"Hey, the Black Knights showed up again last night."

"I heard. I don't know what happened, but apparently the Black Knights busted some politician who was embezzling money."

"Zero and the Black Knights appeared again! They..."

"Zero is awesome! Him and the Black Knights..."

"Zero really is a knight for justice!"

"The Black Knights!"

"Zero!"

By the end of the week, almost everyone in the Tokyo settlement was talking about Zero and the Black Knights. Over the week, the Black Knights showed up again and again, and did just as Zero had proclaimed. They took down various people from criminal syndicates, to terrorists who involved civilians, and corrupt politicians, all fell to the Black Knights. As news of their exploits traveled, support for them grew as well.

* * *

**Now**

_Zero and Lotus and White Knight and Lovestruck and Innocents and The Inventor_

"Hey Kallen, we need to get to the council meeting for today." Lelouch said as he walked up to her desk.

"Alright I am coming." Kallen said in her fake frail voice before getting up and walking with Lelouch to the door.

As they both walked out of the classroom, Kallen heard her 'friends' in the class bemoaning the fact that Lelouch had not asked them to go anywhere.

"Kallen, I have been meaning to ask you, what was up with your behavior at the hotel?" Lelouch asked as they walked toward the student council room.

"What do you mean?" Kallen asked confused.

"I mean why were you acting like that toward Princess Euphemia, you were sending her hostile glares the entire time you were in the same room with her." Lelouch asked.

"Why shouldn't I she is our enemy." Kallen said turning away.

"True but you were only glaring at her and you have not shown any particular hatred towards any one britannian other than her over the past week. So what did Euphemia do to you that made you hate her." Lelouch asked curiously.

"Nothing." Kallen said irritably.

"Alright I will not push the issue but if you want to talk to about it with me then feel free to do so." Lelouch said as he and Kallen got to the Student council room's door.

Lelouch and Kallen walked into the Student Council room to find Shirley, Milly, and Nina talking. Suzaku was busy trying to pet Arthur with the cat continually moving away from him.

Kallen thought back to the day when the caught Arthur.

* * *

**Several Days Ago**

* * *

"Kallen, Lelouch, you two finally came! Come on, we still have to find a name for our new cat. Shirley insists that we should call him spot." Milly said.

"Oh come on Madam Prez, it's a cute name. Just look at the black spot around his eye." Shirley said.

"It would be confusing because spot is a dog's name." Lelouch stated as he sat down. "I still do not see why we are adopting him anyways. In case you forgot, this is my home too so I will most likely be the one taking care of him."

"Too bad Lelouch, it was decided by majority rule." Milly said.

"You decided with only four people here, so when you say majority you really mean you, don't you?" Lelouch said accusingly.

"What can I say, I like cats! Especially this one. Plus four is a majority we only have seven members." Milly said while petting the cat.

"You are probably just hoping he will steal something else from me." Lelouch muttered.

"What did you say Lelouch?" Milly asked accusingly.

"You heard me." Lelouch said.

Kallen smiled as she took a seat and observed the 'discussion' between Lelouch and Milly. The cat then jumped up into her lap and watched the two talk with interest. It was relaxing to hang out with the Student Council after all of the activity with the Black Knights. The cat nudged her hand as if asking for her to pet him. Kallen complied and the cat meowed in happiness.

"He seems to like you Kallen." Shirley said happily.

Kallen looked up from petting the cat to Shirley was smiling at her while Milly and Lelouch were still arguing.

"What can I say, I guess I am just a cat person." Kallen said softly with a laugh. Suzaku laughed a too and walked over. Suzaku reached out to try and pet the cat and was promptly bitten.

"Ow!" Suzaku yelled.

"I guess we can not say the same thing about you, huh Suzaku?" Kallen said, leaning back in her chair. In truth, Kallen was still privately enjoying watching Suzaku getting bitten. _"I like this cat." _Kallen thought.

"Don't worry Suzaku, I will go get the first aid kit." Shirley said as she quickly got up to go get the first aid kit.

The commotion caused by the cat's antics brought Milly and Lelouch out of their argument. Lelouch got up and helped Suzaku get free of the cat's strong teeth since the cat was being very stubborn. Shirley arrived and started to wrap Suzaku's hand in a bandage.

"Thanks Shirley." Suzaku said nursing his hand.

"No problem." Shirley said blushing.

"No doubt about it this is the same cat from before." Suzaku said wincing.

"You seem pretty familiar with this cat Suzaku. Were you the one that bandaged his leg before?" Milly asked with a sly smile.

"No actually, it was someone else who was with me." Suzaku said.

"So a girl huh?" Milly asked knowingly.

"What? How did you know that it was a girl?" Suzaku asked shocked.

Rivalz who had just walked in recognized what Milly was doing and got excited.

"Here we are, another episode of our favorite romance detective!" Rivalz said in a reporter voice smiling as he took a seat.

"Rivalz don't encourage her." Lelouch said groaning.

"You have a girlfriend, don't you?" Milly asked smirking.

"You do?" Shirley asked, somewhat disappointed.

"No, you've got it all wrong" Suzaku tried to explain, digging himself deeper into the hole he was already in.

"I see, the relationship has not gotten that far yet. Though I am sure you really want to." Milly teased.

"What is she like, where did you meet her, is she a student, is she older, is she in the military?" Shirley asked rapidly.

"Shirley, don't bite his head off." Milly chastised. "Now Suzaku tell us about this girl you met the cat with."

"Well, her name is Euphie." Suzaku said.

"Lelouch is Suzaku talking about the Euphie that we both know?" Milly asked Lelouch.

"Yes, Milly he is." Lelouch said calmly

"Huh?" Shirley said. "You two know this Euphie?"

"Yes, Lelouch and I both meet with Euphie before we came to Area Eleven. We have not seen her since the Second Pacific War though." Milly said.

"So how did your date with Euphie go?" Milly asked mischievously.

"It was not a date." Suzaku protested.

"What did you do with Euphie?" Shirley asked.

"Well, she asked me to show her around the Settlement a bit and I could not bring myself to refuse her." Suzaku explained

"Sounds like a date to me." Shirley said excitedly.

"How did you guys meet anyways?" Rivalz asked.

"Well, she never really said what she was doing, but I think she wanted to get away from some of her duties and go sight seeing. She actually jumped out a window to do it and I caught her." Suzaku explained before quickly adding. "She was not hurt or anything, I managed to catch her before she hit the ground."

"Oh, a real Knight in shining armor are you? I bet she just loved lying in your arms after she jumped, huh lover boy?" Milly said smirking as she remembered how Euphemia had grown from when she was younger when she saw her at the hotel.

"Suzaku why did you not mention that Euphie had jumped out a window when you said you met her?" Lelouch asked darkly.

Suzaku was unable to speak, caught between being terrified and embarrassed.

"Um, I did not want to worry you." Suzaku said nervously. "Anyway, after that we found Arthur and she bandaged its leg." Suzaku explained trying to deflect Lelouch's anger.

"Arthur?" Shirley asked.

"Euphie named him Arthur." Suzaku explained.

"Darn, I was hoping to name him Lelouch the second." Milly said frusterated.

"Absolutely not!" Lelouch said in a stern voice. Kallen noted that it was the same voice Lelouch used as Zero.

"Anyway since we now have named our cat, we should have a party." Milly said excitedly.

"You say that about anything, Milly." Lelouch said while deadpanning.

"Regardless of any neigh sayers, we should have a party." Milly said ignoring Lelouch.

"Sounds fun." Shirley said.

"Alright well that settles todays meeting." Milly said. "Now everyone rest up because the cat festival will be next week."

* * *

**Present Time**

* * *

"_I hope we do not have to do anything too strange for Arthur's party_." Kallen thought as Arthur bounded up to her and rubbed against her leg. Kallen picked up Arthur and began to scratch him behind the ears causing him to purr in happiness.

"Alright since everyone is here we can get started." Milly said smiling. "Shirley has gathered costumes for everyone to wear tomorrow. So everyone pick an outfit and try it on."

"I just remembered I have a project due, I will be at the library if anyone needs me." Kallen said putting Arthur on the table and quickly leaving the council room.

"We have to go too, right Rivalz." Lelouch said.

"Right." Rivalz said as he got up and headed out the door in a hurry.

"I wonder were they are going in such a hurry?" Suzaku wondered aloud.

"They are probably going off to gamble again." Shirley said frowning.

"Are you sure Lelouch and Kallen are not going on a date with Rivalz as Lelouch's wingman?" Milly asked teasingly.

"Madam President!" Shirley yelled blushing.

"It is what you were thinking. Shirley, you need to make a move or Kallen and Lelouch might start dating." Milly said teasingly. "Or have you moved on and now want to date the schools Knight. Who knows, he might save you next. Or maybe you want both of them, you naughty girl."

"Madam President!" Shirley yelled blushing even more.

"I am confused. What just happened?" Suzaku asked very confused.

"Do not worry, Suzaku. But tomorrow I am going to need your help with something." Milly said smirking. "What I am going to need you to do is..."

* * *

_Lotus and Gear and Tempest and Ninja_

Nunnally and Rai turned around when they heard the ding of the elevator to the lab open up. They saw Kallen walking out of the elevator with slightly upset expression.

"What is bothering you Kallen?" Nunnally asked.

"Milly is being Milly and Lelouch was being too nosy." Kallen said.

"Was he asking why you were upset at Princess Euphemia?" Rai asked confused. "And how could Milly not be Milly?"

"Yes, Lelouch was talking about how you seemed to be upset at Euphie. Why is that Kallen?" Nunnally asked innocently as she turned back to the screen in front of her.

"I just don't think that Lelouch should be getting involved with her." Kallen said stubbornly.

"Kallen, you do realize that Euphemia is his sister right?" Rai said deadpanning.

"I think Kallen was jealous of how Lelouch was talking to Euphie." Nunnally said teasingly as she didn't take her eyes of of the screen in front of her.

"Shut up, I don't know what you are talking about." Kallen said with a flustered look on her face.

"So you did realize that Euphemia was his sister." Rai said, clearly confused by her answer.

"No, Kallen meant that she was not jealous in response to my question." Nunnally said. "I am sure that you know what I mean Kallen. I have noticed how you talk about Lelouch. You like him don't you?"

"No, I just... Fine I like him." Kallen said down heartedly. "But I don't think that he likes me back."

"Nonsense, he cares about you Kallen. The fact that the nickname he gave you was Q-1 is proof enough." Nunnally said.

"What does that have anything to do with it?" Kallen asked hopefully.

"My brother loves chess." Nunnally started to say before Rai interrupted her.

"Loves? More like he is obsessed with it." Rai said before Nunnally hit him on the head with a pad of paper.

"Do not interrupt me when I am explaining something. Q-1 is the name of the queen in chess, so he sees you as his queen." Nunnally explained.

"But he gave me that name before he met me and got to know me." Kallen said, looking down sadly.

"He also never stopped calling you that even after he got to know you. He also convinced me and Rai to make you a special outfit instead of you getting the standard uniform of the Black Knights." Nunnally said.

"Lelouch probably doesn't know that you like him back. Lelouch is pretty dense." Rai commented offhandedly. This earned him another whack on the head from Nunnally's pad of paper.

"People in glass houses should not throw stones, Rai. Besides Lelouch noticed that Shirley liked him." Nunnally said irritably.

"Wait, if Lelouch noticed how Shirley feels about him, then how come he is not dating her?" Kallen asked.

"He also noticed that half the girls on campus like him, yet he does not date them either." Rai said bluntly. Nunnally then gave Rai a small glare.

"As Rai so eloquently put it, Lelouch does not like Shirley back in that way. He sees her as a close friend and does not want to ruin their friendship by breaking her heart." Nunnally said.

"So there is still a chance?" Kallen asked hopefully.

"Yes but you need to be direct with your feelings." Nunnally said. "You have my support, Lelouch need someone else special in his life. Isn't that right Sayoko."

"Indeed Nunnally-sama." Sayoko said appearing beside Kallen.

"What the hell!" Kallen yelled. "Sayoko when did you get here?"

"I got here when Nunnally-sama hit Rai-san on the head." Sayoko explained.

"Well don't sneak up on me like that." Kallen said.

"You should be used to it by now, Lelouch-sama loves sneaking up on everyone except Nunnally-sama and Rai-San." Sayoko said in a matter of fact tone. "Or maybe he does not do it to you since he likes you."

"Leave it be!" Kallen said before storming out of the room.

"Well that went well." Rai said sarcastically as Nunnally and Sayoko burst into laughter.

"Yes it did Rai." Nunnally said chearfully.

"I do not understand women." Rai grumbled.

"No, you don't." Nunnally and Sayoko said together.

"That was not a question." Rai growled frustratedly, ignoring Nunnally and Sayoko's giggles.

* * *

**Warehouse**

_Zero and Lotus and The Teacher and The Fool_

"The next shipment will be on schedule." A business man assured.

"I understand, with the Black Knights running around you had to reschedule the shipment to today." A man in a black suit said. "As usual, the payment will be transferred to your wifes account once the weapons are loaded onto the truck."

The lights then cut out and both men heard shots fired.

"Hurry turn on the lights." The business man yelled. The lights clicked on and the two men found themselves surrounded by the Black Knights.

"Surrender or die. Your choice." Zero said menacingly with a european longsword's point under one of the men's throat. After both men were tied up, the Black Knights checked the cargo of the fully loaded trucks.

"Holy Shit! This is high grade weaponry!" Tamaki yelled loudly.

"Of course, we are stealing from the Britannian Mafia. Ohgi can you drive this back to the hideout with the others and help them unload the weapons." Zero said.

"Sure, but where are you going?" Ohgi asked.

"Kallen and I will be going to see my supplier to check on the status of the Bikoheika." Zero explained.

"Alright but can I talk to Kallen first?" Ohgi asked.

"Sure but make it fast we need to get out of here. Kallen, I will be waiting at point Alpha meet me there." Zero said as he turned and walked out of the ware house, vanishing into the night.

"What is it Ohgi?" Kallen asked.

"I am not entirely comfortable with you being alone with Zero." Ohgi said quietly.

"Ohgi, you were the one wanted him as our leader in the first place." Kallen said.

"I know I just don't feel that comfortable with you being alone with a guy." Ohgi said in a protective voice.

"Ohgi, I understand that you are just trying to keep me safe but trust me to take care of my self." Kallen responded smiling. "Besides, you don't know if Zero is a guy."

"Alright, just be careful." Ohgi said before he ran over to the driver seat of the truck and got in with the others and drove away.

Kallen quickly turned and ran towards the point that Lelouch was going to meet her at. She quickly found the one of the entrances to the underground tunnels that ran through out the settlement and connected to Ashford Academy. She quickly climbed down the ladder that lead into the tunnels and ran toward her meeting point with Lelouch. She quickly rounded a corner and bumped into Lelouch who caught her in order to prevent her from falling.

"Kallen are you alright? What is the hurry?" Lelouch asked in a concerned voice as he held her to his chest.

"Nothing, I just did not want to keep you waiting." Kallen said before blushing and pulling out of Lelouch's arms. "Why are you not wearing your shirt!"

"I was changing out of my Zero uniform before you ran into me because I thought I would have more time." Lelouch said blushing.

"Well hurry up and put your shirt on." Kallen said turning around with her face completely red.

"Alright Kallen." Lelouch said after he put his shirt on. "I will go around the corner so you can change out of your uniform. Your clothes are in the compartment beside my Zero uniform on my motercycle."

"Wait, why do you have some of my clothes." Kallen asked angrily.

"You did not pick up your uniform that got dirty at your introduction party because of what happened with introducing you to everyone and I then drove you home. Sayoko recently found your clean uniform and before we left she asked me to give them to you to change into." Lelouch explained before walking around the corner. "Now you can change, just let me know when you are done."

"Alright." Kallen said as she took the visor and cape off of her uniform. "_Damn Sayoko, she and Nunnally probably planned this situation out." _Kallen thought as she took the rest of her uniform off and was left in her underwear. Kallen shivered from the cold air and quickly put on her school uniform.

"Lelouch, I am done you can come over here." Kallen called out as she walked toward the corner that Lelouch had walked around. Just as she got to the corner, Lelouch walk out from around the corner causing them to crash into each other. They both blushed at the awkward position they had fallen in. Lelouch was on his back with Kallen on top of him with her hands on either side of his head and her lower body straddling his body with their faces only inches apart.

"Sorry about that Kallen." Lelouch said blushing. "I am sorry for knocking you over."

"Why are you apologizing, you are the on that landed on your back. Are you ok?" Kallen asked in a concerned voice.

"I am fine, thanks to training from Sayoko I was able to absorb to most of the force without getting hurt." Lelouch said before getting up on his elbows, making their faces even closer.

"Lelouch, what do I mean to you?" Kallen asked nervously.

"Kallen, what brought this up?" Lelouch asked blushing at their closeness.

"Just answer the question Lelouch." Kallen said blushing.

"You are a very important comrade of mine." Lelouch answered vaguely.

_"You need to be direct with your feelings._" Kallen remembered from her conversation with Nunnally. Kallen then leaned forward and captured Lelouch's lips with her own, knocking him off his elbows. Lelouch didn't react at first to the kiss so Kallen started to pull back from the kiss when one of Lelouch's hands found the back of her head, causing Kallen's eyes to widen as Lelouch pulled her back into the kiss. A few seconds later, Lelouch wrapped his arms around Kallen's waist while Kallen wrapped her arms around Lelouch's neck. After a few moments they released each other's lips for oxygen. Kallen and Lelouch smiled at each other and were amazed for the moment with Kallen stroking Lelouch's raven black hair as she laid her head on his chest.

"Not that I didn't like that, but why did you kiss me?" Lelouch asked.

"I care a lot about you Lelouch and wanted to show you." Kallen said blushing.

"Well I care a lot about you too, Kallen. So let me show you." Lelouch said as he leaned down and kissed Kallen again. This kiss was shorter than the last one but was much more intense. After the kiss, Lelouch leaned back. "How was that?" Lelouch asked smirking.

"Wonderful." Kallen said as she laid down her head on Lelouch's chest. They both jerked up when Lelouch's phone started to ring.

"Sorry, I have to take this." Lelouch said as he disconnected himself from Kallen.

"It is alright. We should be going anyway." Kallen said slightly disappointed.

"Hello." Lelouch said into the phone.

"Lelouch, where are you and Kallen?" Nunnally asked over the phone.

"We are on our way now. The operation was delayed slightly." Lelouch said evasively.

"Alright, I hope you too were safe." Nunnally teased before she hung up.

"Nunnally!" Lelouch yelled frustratedly.

"What was it Lelouch?" Kallen asked as she got on Lelouch's motorcycle.

"Nothing, Nunnally just told us to hurry up." Lelouch said as he put his helmet on and got on the motorcycle.

"Well, lets go. We wouldn't want to keep her waiting." Kallen said putting on her helmet as Lelouch revved his engine and the motorcycle shot down the tunnel.

* * *

**The Next Day**

* * *

**Stadtfeld Manor**

_Lotus_

Kallen lay face down on her bed, completely naked with the exception of her panties, exhausted but was quite satisfied with the outcome of the mission last night. Things were picking up since their debut. They were doing some minor raids and quite a few missions to boost their popularity among the populace of Japan. From helping those who were bullied by Britannian Military Populace, to liberating Japanese women force to serve as prostitutes for the Britannian nobles and military, all the way to stopping smugglers from shipping products that were rightfully theirs. Truthfully, most of them were confused on why they were doing such heroic acts but Zero had explained it to them how they need to live up to their names as Knights of Justice and they also need to build their reputation for the future when they take back Japan. He said, what is the use of them freeing Japan if they can not establish a government that has the will of the people behind it. After that, they were more eager to do those heroic acts.

_'Lelouch,' _Kallen thought with a small blush as her hand suddenly travelled south. He was a walking contradiction and she like that trait about him. At first glance, Lelouch Lamperouge was laid back to the point of apathy; he treats those who don't know him depending on how they act with a blank expression adorning his face. On the other hand, he treats his friends and allies with respect and care. Then when he is with her, Rai or Nunnally he is much more athletic than he is with others. Then there was the kiss they shared the night before.

_'That was amazing.'_ Kallen thought as she slowly rubbed her pussy with her fingers causing her to let out a soft moan of pleasure.

_'Lelouch,'_ Kallen thought once more as a vivid image of him suddenly flashed before her eyes causing her insert one finger inside her, she had to bite back a moan._  
_

"Lelouch," Kallen moaned as she felt her liquids slowly dampening her panties as she inserted the second finger and began moving it in and out of her. She began moaning silently yet wildly and would have continued that way when a loud crash from outside interrupted her.

She cursed silently as she threw her red dressing gown and opened the door and looked out into the hall. She had almost yelled in frustration when she saw her mother, and the broken chandelier. Kallen almost instantly knew that she broke it.

Her mother was a bit startled and disappointment at her handiwork as she looked up from her handiwork only to her 'mistress'. "Kallen…I mean Miss, forgive me, I didn't wish to wake you." Kallen's mother said apologetically. as a small smile slowly made its way to her lips.

"Again," Kallen whispered, trying to fight back the irate tone in her voice.

"Sorry, it was the step ladder this time, it broke." Her mother explained sadly.

"Well just clean it up and be quick about it. I have to go to school soon." Kallen dismissively, the sooner she was out of her sight, the better.

"Mistress, you have been attending school quite a bit lately. Have you made any friends there?" Kallen's mother asked perking up.

"I do not see how that is any of your business." Kallen said sharply before walking back into her room and closing the door.

"Why won't you just leave, mom?" Kallen sobbed to herself with her back against the door.

* * *

**Ashford Academy**

_Zero and Lotus and White Knight and Lovestruck and The Inventor and Innocents_

"Man this double life sure is a killer." Kallen said yawning as she leaned on the door post to the student council room.

"Suzaku, Rivalz hold him down." Kallen heard Milly through the door.

"Suzaku, Rivalz cut it out." Kallen heard Lelouch say through the door. Kallen then pushed the door button and the door opened and Kallen walked in to a very strange scene.

Everyone was dressed in some form of cat costume and Suzaku and Rivalz were holding Lelouch still so that Shirley could paint whiskers on his face.

"Good meowning." Milly said waving a pawed hand at Kallen after noticing that Kallen had walked in.

"Good morning, I guess?" Kallen said confused.

"Oh hi Kallen." Shirley said turning away from painting Lelouch's face.

"What is all this?" Kallen asked

"What do you mean. It is the welcome party for Arthur." Rivalz informed Kallen.

"Sounds like fun." Kallen said quietly.

"Well classes are postponed, so we might as well have som fun." Milly said.

"I set some stuff aside for you." Shirley said before pointing to a costume rack. "Over here. To make up for me getting so upset with you before. Go on take your pick."

"Oh trying to get on good terms with your future sister." Milly said teasingly.

"Sister?" Shirley asked confused.

"Yes, your future harem sister." Milly said grinning.

"Milly!/ What?" Kallen yelled and Shirley shrieked.

"Oh lay of them, Milly." Lelouch said.

"I thought I told you to call me Madam president during club meetings." Milly said before whacking Lelouch on the head. "You are teaching your bad habits to our newer member."

"What bad habits?" Kallen asked.

"You should be a comedian Kallen because Lelouch has far too many bad habits to list and you are starting to pick them up. You are missing lots of classes, sleeping through classes, not calling me Madam President." Milly said counting off on her paw glove Lelouch's faults. "Next thing you know you will be gambling with him."

"Milly, Kallen was already missing classes because of her illness, and how is calling you Milly a bad habit." Lelouch said.

"What do you think, movie star." Rivalz asked Shirley.

"I thought she was talking about Kallen though." Suzaku said.

"Will you guys stop joking about that." Shirley said frustratedly. "The whole thing is a pain in the butt. We have been hounded with questions day and night. Even in the bath."

"We have not even been able to leave school grounds in a week." Milly wined.

"Not that I don't feel for you, but I don't see why we can't leave either." Rivalz said still holding Lelouch.

"That is the price of friendship. The romance of the three Kingdoms. It matters not that we were born apart, apon this day we die as one." Milly said with her arms crossed.

"Is that your idea of a love quote?" Rivalz asked.

"If I go down, then we all do." Milly said smirking.

"That is a little dark. Right Suzaku?" Rivalz said before turning to Suzaku.

"I'm just glad that we could all be together again like this." Suzaku said tearing up.

"Hey, we are supposed to be unwinding here." Rivalz said as he vaulted over Lelouch and tackling Suzaku causing everyone to laugh.

"That is what is refreshing about Suzaku. Always so serious." Shirley said. "You could learn a thing or two from Suzaku, Lelouch."

"My has my little Shirley set her sights on our resident soldier in addition to the class prince. So ambitious." Milly said teasingly.

"Madam President!" Shirley cried out.

"What are you guys talking about?" Suzaku tried to ask as his cheeks were pushed together by Rivalz.

"Don't worry about them putty tat." Rivalz said causing everyone to giggle again.

"Alright well Kallen why don't you put on a costume otherwise Milly will pick one for you like she did with me." Lelouch said as he stood up from the chair he was tied to as the ropes fell to the ground.

"Lelouch how did you get up?" Shirley asked looking at the fallen rope.

"The knot came undone." Lelouch said nonchalantly as he stepped over Rivalz and Suzaku who were still rolling around on the ground.

"What! Those were some of the tightest knots I can make." Suzaku said freeing his face from Rivalz grip.

"Well whatever, Kallen why don't you pick an outfit out." Lelouch said leading Kallen to the costume rack.

Kallen picked out a pair of pink cat ears and some pink cat gloves and boots.

"Well, how do I look?" Kallen asked putting her cat paws up to her face.

"You look nice, Kallen." Lelouch said smiling.

"Mou!" Shirley yelled as she ran over.

"Lelouch how do I look?" Shirley said as she got in Lelouch's face.

"You look nice too Shirley." Lelouch said unflustered.

"How about me Lelouch? How do I look?" Milly asked as she pressed her breasts into Lelouch's back.

"Well Milly, I can not really tell since you are standing behind me. However based on what I saw before of your outfit, I would have to say you look excellent compared to how your outfits usually make you look." Lelouch said in a flat tone with a smirk on his face.

"Lelouch that was mean." Milly said pouting.

"Well you asked. Anyway, what is up with today. Is today ask Lelouch what he thinks of your cat costume day." Lelouch said sarcastically.

"Yep." Milly said smiling. "Now onward to the party."

Milly than dragged Lelouch out of the student council room to the ballroom, with everyone following behind. Once there they all went to work finishing putting up the decorations. Soon enough the party was infull swing.

Unlike Lelouch, Kallen actually seemed to enjoy being dressed up in a pinkish red fuzzy suit with cat ears.

Kallen made a series of cute nyaa sounds as her sleeping form repositioned. She was laying over Lelouch, her head resting on the arm of the couch, and her legs stretched out across the rest of it.

As he looked over toward his right, Lelouch made eye contact with Shirley on the other side of the room. He smiled at the orange headed girl. Shirley's expression shifted to that of a deer in headlights when she noticed the sleeping Kallen holding on to him. She stared for a few second before lowering her head and turning away.

Lelouch thought of wiggling away from Kallen and going to talk to Shirley, but decided against it. Suzaku came over and sat down on the chair next to them.

"So Lelouch, are you and Kallen dating?" Suzaku asked mischievously.

Kallen's leg swung out in her sleep and knocked Suzaku's chair over.

"Ow." Suzaku said rubbing his back.

"I don't I should answer that question given what just happened to you." Lelouch said smirking. Kallen had a smirk on her face as she put her leg back on the couch.

"Well are you?" Suzaku asked not giving up.

"Yes." Kallen said quietly without opening her eyes.

"Kallen, you were awake this whole time weren't you?" Suzaku said as he got off of the floor.

"Maybe." Kallen said smirking as she opened her eyes.

"Well why did you kick my chair if you just admitted to dating Lelouch." Suzaku said indignantly. The whole room suddenly became quiet since everyone had heard the last part of Suzaku's statement.

"So that not every one would know, Idiot." Kallen said closing her eyes and putting her head on Lelouch's lap. The silence was broken by a loud thud followed by many thuds as Shirley fainted with most of Lelouch's fangirls fainting soon after. The party was pandimonium after that, trying to revive the girls that had fainted. No one noticed that Kallen and Lelouch snuck out of the back door of the ballroom.

* * *

_Zero and Lotus_

"That was completely unnecessary, Kallen." Lelouch said taking off his cat ears.

"How? With this we can be absent more offten with better excuses and you will not have to worry about your fan girls. Or are we not dating Lelouch?" Kallen asked pouting.

"We are Kallen, I just thought that you wouldn't want people to know about it yet." Lelouch said calmly. "Then there is the issue with Shirley."

"Lelouch, you were going to have to tell her that you don't feel the same way about her eventually." Kallen said putting her pawed hand on Lelouch's shoulder.

"You are right, I just didn't want to break her heart." Lelouch said. "Well come on we need to prepare for our next mission."

"Yes sir." Kallen said with a mock salute as they walked toward the library.

* * *

_Battle Queen and The Princess_

"The E.U. is starting an offensive along the El Alamein front. We can't keep dragging our feet around here. I want to solidify domestic affairs. It is high time that Area 11 became a satellite nation. For that to happen we need to stamp out terrorism. But another problem is the rampant use of Refrain among the elevens. Productivity among the elevens is plummeting. It is coming in on the Chinese federation's Kyushu route. We have to put an end of it." Cornelia said as she walked with Euphemia.

"Yes, but be careful." Euphemia said, genuinely worried about her sister going off to another mission.

"You as well, I don't want you leaving the settlement." Cornelia said, still a bit paranoid after her sister's involvement in that hostage taking drama two weeks ago.

"Cornelia, what about the Black Knights and Zero?" Euphemia asked curiously. After that chase Zero lured her sister in, Cornelia was hell bent in killing the mask vigilante.

"I will let them roam free a bit longer. They are too well hidden for me to go after at the moment. However, once I finish with the other terrorists in Area 11." Cornelia said, her gaze softening as her hand caressed the cheeks of her beloved sister. "However, upon my return. Once I clean up this area, I'll entrust it to you. Try to stay out of harm's way from now on, alright Euphy." Cornelia said with a gentle smile.

"Alright sister." Euphemia said. '_Zero who are you?_' Euphemia thought. _'and why do you seem so familiar?'_

* * *

Authors Note

This was going to be one chapter with the Refrain episode but some emotional development made the chapter too long. So here it is in two chapters instead.

Lime action in this chapter, lemons eventually.

Euphy is getting suspicious, but will she find out? Maybe, maybe not. stay tuned to find out.

Lelouch Vi Britannia commands you, Review!


	11. Refrain from Refrain

Early Start: Refrain from Refrain

"_Thoughts_"

"Speech"

Action

**Time**

CUSTOMARY DISCLAIMER: I do not, nor have in any way, ever owned anything to do with the original anime or story which my fan fictions are based off of. These stories are written for the sole purpose of entertainment, and not meant to achieve any profit through selling it. Honestly.

I assure you that I do not promote violence against Flamers (I do, however, find it hilarious).

* * *

**Last Time**

"The E.U. is starting an offensive along the El Alamein front. We can't keep dragging our feet around here. I want to solidify domestic affairs. It is high time that Area 11 became a satellite nation. For that to happen we need to stamp out terrorism. But another problem is the rampant use of Refrain among the elevens. Productivity among the elevens is plummeting. It is coming in on the Chinese federation's Kyushu route. We have to put an end of it." Cornelia said as she walked with Euphemia.

"Yes, but be careful." Euphemia said, genuinely worried about her sister going off to another mission.

"You as well, I don't want you leaving the settlement." Cornelia said, still a bit paranoid after her sister's involvement in that hostage taking drama two weeks ago.

"Cornelia, what about the Black Knights and Zero?" Euphemia asked curiously. After that chase Zero lured her sister in, Cornelia was hell bent in killing the mask vigilante.

"I will let them roam free a bit longer. They are too well hidden for me to go after at the moment. However, once I finish with the other terrorists in Area 11." Cornelia said, her gaze softening as her hand caressed the cheeks of her beloved sister. "However, upon my return. Once I clean up this area, I'll entrust it to you. Try to stay out of harm's way from now on, alright Euphie." Cornelia said with a gentle smile.

"Alright sister." Euphemia said. '_Zero who are you?_' Euphemia thought. _'And why do you seem so familiar?'_

* * *

**Now**

**Ashford Academy**

_Zero and White Knight and Innocents_

"So Suzaku, how is work going for you in the army." Lelouch asked as he leafed through a magazine article on the Black knights.

"Pretty good so far, being in the engineering division is interesting to say the least." Suzaku said as he tried to get Arthur to play with a toy.

"I have been meaning to ask you about that Suzaku. How did you get into the engineering division anyway? No offence but you are not really the type of person to be an engineer." Lelouch said glancing at Suzaku.

"Truth is Lelouch, I do work in an engineering division, but it's not what it sounds like. My boss is a high ranking member of the Camelot program, Prime Minister Schneizel's personal research and development organization. I can't say much since almost all of it is highly classified, but Camelot is here to field test experimental technologies including Britannia's first seventh generation knightmare." Suzaku answered with a very large degree of truth.

"So you are the test pilot then." Lelouch said calmly.

"What how did you know that?" Suzaku asked in a shocked voice.

"It is obvious if you think about it. You specifically mentioned the seventh generation knightmare so you must know more about it. This would only happen if you were testing or designing it. Since you obviously are not designing it, you must be the pilot. Also, you said Britannia's first seventh generation knightmare, not the first seventh generation knightmare. Can you explain that?" Lelouch said calmly as he closed the article he was reading.

"Well after I was first sent out in the Lancelot during the battle of Shinjuku, I..." Suzaku started to say.

"Wait you mean they chose you to be the pilot when you were injured from being shot." Lelouch said a questioning tone.

"Well, yes but the bullet only glanced me. My father's watch deflected the bullet." Suzaku assured Lelouch. "However, during the Shinjuku battle I tried to engage the red Glasgow that the terrorists were using. However the Glasgow exploded the moment I hit it and I was then engaged by black knightmare. Whoever the pilot was, they were very good. They were able to match me in the Lancelot before collapsing a building on top of me to get away."

"Really, then how did you survive?" Lelouch asked, genuinely curious.

"Thankfully, the building landed so that I was inside a room and was not injured and the Lancelot was not destroyed." Suzaku said nonchalantly. "This makes me think that Zero has a seventh generation knightmare and doesn't value human life. This makes him a very dangerous opponent."

"Where from your story did you get the fact that Zero has no value for human life?" Lelouch asked slightly shocked that Suzaku would think that.

"He sacrificed one of his men in order to damage me slightly and knocked a building full of people on top of me to try and win." Suzaku said frowning.

"Suzaku, I have a question. Are you aware of what happened during the battle of Shinjuku?" Lelouch asked in a stern voice.

"Terrorists caused many casualties by releasing the poison gas..." Suzaku started to say before Lelouch interrupted him.

"We both know that is not true." Lelouch said irritably. "You may try to pretend that terrorists killed those civilians, but I heard Clovis specifically order the massacre of the entire Shinjuku ghetto."

"What?" Suzaku said surprised.

"I saw soldiers killing anyone that moved, even children. So I doubt that anyone was in the building he dropped on you. Also was the Glasgow moving?" Lelouch said calming down slightly near the end.

"Well now that you mention it, the Glasgow was not moving. I just thought if I destroyed the terrorists main unit it would stop them." Suzaku said shaking slightly from the information that Clovis had ordered a massacre.

"Then the Glasgow was probable rigged to blow as a trap for Clovis' troops." Lelouch said. "I am just glad that Zero managed to force Clovis to call a ceasefire before more people were killed."

"What do you mean?" Suzaku asked.

"I know Clovis and he would never surrender unless he is directly threatened so Zero must have snuck in and forced him to surrender and then killed him. Not that I blame him." Lelouch said.

"Lelouch!" Suzaku yelled getting up suddenly.

"What. He ordered the massacre of unarmed civilians to cover up whatever that girl was. He deserved what he got." Lelouch said with a dark look.

They both looked at each other coldly before the tension was broken by Milly walking in the door.

"I hope I am not interrupting something, but Lelouch I need you to come with me right now." Milly said, dispelling the tension.

"We will talk later Suzaku." Lelouch said as he got up from his seat and walked to the door.  
"Sure, we will talk later Lelouch." Suzaku mumbled as he sat back down lost in his thoughts.

* * *

**Stadtfeld Manor**

_Lotus and Zero and Innocents_

Kallen was descending on a fleet of stairs as her mother, real mother, had called her, saying that she has visitors.

"Mistress Kallen, Mistress Kallen," Her Mother called as both Milly and Lelouch stood outside of her family's mansion.

"Lelouch, Milly." Kallen exclaimed loudly as two familiar figures met her gaze.

Lelouch gave her a nod while Milly merely pouted in her direction. "No, no, no. You need to call me Madam President." Milly said frowning.

"Anyway, we just dropped by to give you something." Lelouch said as the maid turn around and glanced at Kallen.

"Where would you like me to show them to, the parlor perhaps or maybe…?" The maid trailed off as Kallen interrupted her as she narrowed her gazed.

"We'll be in my room." Kallen said coldly.

"As you wish." The maid replied with a feeble tone.

"Oh, I heard you had friends down here." An irritating, feminine voice caught their attentions. A blonde woman wearing elegant clothes and jewelry suddenly appeared on the top of the stairs, her eyes a narrowed. "So is this the boy that has been taking you out all night." The woman asked as her gazed fell on Lelouch. "Out all night and missing school, not to mention all your visits to the Ghetto, you're lucky your father is back in the homeland." The woman then sneered at the maid besides Lelouch. "No fighting one's blood, is there?" The maid instantly looked at her feet as she slowly inch away from the visitors.

"You're the one who's enjoying dad not being around here, aren't you?" Kallen yelled as she glared at her step-mother with disdain.

Lelouch instantly hated the attitude of Kallen's step-mother, it was the attitude of the nobles that he despised. Lelouch silently grabbed the maid's wrist in order to avoid the vase being knocked over.

"Watch your step, miss." Lelouch advised her as he gave her a comforting smile.

Lelouch then let go of her wrist and followed Kallen and Milly to Kallen's room.

* * *

In Kallen's room, Kallen and Milly were seated in a table, with Lelouch waiting outside. Milly said that it was improper for a boy to enter a girl's room, something that Lelouch agreed with.

"So what was it you wanted to give me?" Kallen asked, reverting to her sickly persona.

"My grandfather asked me to pass this on." Milly said as she searched for something from her purse.

"You mean the Principal?" Kallen asked surprised.

"Your transcript since Middle School," Milly said as she slid an envelope with the Ashford's insignia on it towards Kallen. Kallen visibly flinch at this. "I thought I had better give them to you off of school grounds."

"So my secret is out then, isn't it? That I'm actually an Eleven-Britannian half-breed." Kallen said, feeling a bit disgusted at referring to her Japanese heritage as a number.

Kallen then opened the envelope and read what's inside of it. "That was my step-mother down there; my mother was the clouded maid." Kallen explained as she took a pen and sign on the dotted line.

"And your father is he the head of the Stadtfeld family?" Milly asked softly, knowing that this is a sensitive subject for her.

Kallen looked down in order to hide her sorrow filled eyes. "My mother is such a fool. In the end she winded up as a servant." Kallen whispered bitterly. "She doesn't have any real skills, no matter who's ridiculing her; all she can do is laugh like it was nothing." Kallen clench her hands, refusing to shed a tear for her mother. "She doesn't have to choose to stay in this house, you know. She's just clinging to some old lover who jilted her."

"You really hate your mother, don't you?" Milly asked softly, a sad expression adorning her face. She actually pitied Kallen's real mother.

"I just find her depressing." Kallen answered as she reaches for tea.

"Well this is getting heavy." Milly then looked outside, reflecting on her own predicament. "Imagine the wife, and the daughter and the other woman, all living together."

"Could be worse, three square meals and a roof, right?" Kallen then offered her tea. "I mean, it's not unbearable, most of the time anyway." Kallen whispered with a small frown.

"That's good, still." A sad smile adorned Milly's features as she looked outside. "Something's in life we can bear on our own but, when you add them all up, they eventually break you." Kallen perked up at that as she stared at the normally upbeat president.

"Oh, don't worry, I won't lie, I'm always hungry for secrets but I never talk about something like this." Milly assured her as she took a sip on the tea offered to her.

"Like Lelouch and Nunnally's secret?" Kallen asked.

"My, my, your relationship must be very serious if he has told you about that." Milly said waving her hand in front of her face. "Looks like Shirley doesn't stand a chance."

"Milly!" Kallen yelled flushed, the tension in the room having faded.

Outside Kallen's room, a figure was listening to their conversation.

"Kallen, your mother loves you that is why she stays with you." Lelouch said quietly, a tear quietly streaking down his cheek as he remembered his life with his mother.

Lelouch quickly wiped the tear from his cheek as he heard the two inside moving toward the door. A few seconds later Kallen and Milly walked out of the room, with Kallen's face being flushed from embarrassment.

"What did I miss?" Lelouch asked smirking.

"Oh, we were just discussing where you two should go for your mandatory date." Milly said tauntingly.

"Mandatory Date?!" Kallen yelled blushing.

"Of course. Since you two ruined the party by causing most of the girls to faint. You two have to go on a mandatory date." Milly said smiling.

"First of all that was Suzaku who ruined the dance so he should be the one punished. Second of all going on a date is not really a punishment Milly, or are you insinuating that either of us is not pleasant company?" Lelouch asked with a smirk.

"No, but since it was not entirely your fault you two just have to prove that you were being serious. Otherwise the consequences will be dire." Milly said waving her finger at them.

"I wouldn't joke about that Milly, I did not want to hurt Shirley's feelings." Lelouch said. "Well I am not opposed to the idea, Kallen why don't you get dressed and I will wait outside for you."

"Alright, I wasn't planning doing anything today anyway." Kallen said before walking back into her room to get changed.

Milly and Lelouch walk back down the hallway they went through to get to Kallen's room. Once outside Milly immediately began to grill Lelouch.

"So Lelouch, you knew about Shirley's feelings for you?" Milly asked with a cocked eyebrow.

"Yes, but I just don't feel the same way about her. I care about her as a close friend though so I didn't want to hurt her feelings." Lelouch said sighing.

"So, you told Kallen about your past." Milly said with all traces of humor gone from her face.

"Yes and she told me truth about her heritage as well. Milly I trust her." Lelouch said before looking directly into Milly's eyes.

"Alright then, you two have fun. However I want you two to be responsible. I doubt Nunnally wants to be an aunt right now." Milly said as she ran off with a bright smile on her face.

"I wouldn't be too sure, Nunnally loves kids!" Lelouch yelled to Milly, causing her to trip slightly and almost fall. Lelouch smirked at that scene.

A few minutes later Kallen walked out dressed in a pink skirt and a white shirt. When she noticed the smirk on Lelouch's face she was confused.

"Why are you smiling like that?" Kallen asked causing Lelouch to turn fully toward Kallen.

"What? I can't just be happy that I am going on a date with my beautiful girlfriend?" Lelouch asked smiling as he held his hand up to Kallen's face.

"No it is not that." Kallen said blushing. "You were smirking in a certain way unlike how you're smiling now."

"Nothing really, I was just giving Milly a taste of her own medicine." Lelouch said. "Are you ready to go?"

"Yes, do you know where we are going?" Kallen asked egger to see how Lelouch had planned something in the short time since Milly had informed them of the mandatory date.

"Why don't we go to the mall and then go visit the warehouse we are going to show your friends tonight." Lelouch said as they walked out to the front of Kallen's house. "We will take my motorcycle."

"Lelouch I have a question? If you and Milly came here on your motorcycle, how is Milly going to get back to school?" Kallen asked as they both walked out the front gate.

"I don't know why, don't you ask her?" Lelouch said smirking as they both saw Milly standing by Lelouch's motorcycle looking sheepish.

"Milly did you forget that you needed a ride here?" Kallen asked slyly.

"I remembered." Milly said huffing. "I just didn't want to ruin your date."

"We will drop you off at Ashford." Lelouch said taking out three helmets out of a compartment on his bike.

"Lelouch, what don't you have in your bike?" Milly sarcastically asked.

"A high caliber anti-knightmare rifle." Lelouch said completely seriously while putting on the black helmet before handing the red helmet to Kallen and tossing the blue helmet to a surprised Milly.

"Now Milly, you get on behind me and Kallen you get on in front of me." Lelouch said getting on in the middle of the bike.

Kallen got on in front of Lelouch after putting on the red helmet and Lelouch put his arms around her to put his hands on the handle bar. "Milly you coming?" Kallen asked.

"I'm coming, I was just admiring the view of the cute couple." Milly said as she put her helmet on and sat down behind Lelouch, wrapping her hands around Lelouch's chest to hold on.

Lelouch then drove his motorcycle towards Ashford Academy in silence.

Twenty minutes later they pulled up in front of Ashford Academy and Milly hoped off before tossing her helmet to Lelouch. "Well as much fun as it was to ride on your motorcycle Lelouch, I should probably let you two get to your date." Milly said smiling.

"Alright, see you tomorrow Milly." Lelouch said before driving towards a shopping center with Kallen behind him.

* * *

**Tokyo Settlement**

_Zero and Lotus_

Kallen stood at the top of an open air mall in the center of a park in the Britannian section of Tokyo. She stood on the walkway above the mall next to Lelouch as they walked together out of a store where Lelouch had just taken Kallen clothes shopping.

"Lelouch thanks for the jacket." Kallen said admiring the blue coat she now was wearing unzipped over her shoulders.

"It was my pleasure. I am used to going shopping for both Nunnally, Rai and myself so it was no problem. Now why don't we get some food before we head over to the warehouse that we are going to show the others before tonight's operation." Lelouch said giving Kallen a genuine smile.

"So what are we doing tonight?" Kallen asked as they walked through the mall looking for a restaurant.

"We are going to be showing the others the warehouse, introducing them to Rai and attacking the refrain dealers based in the Tokyo settlement." Lelouch said as they kept walking.

"So Lelouch, What exactly is Refrain?" Kallen asked.

"It's a psychotropic drug that makes you feel like you are in the past. I'm sure you can guess why it's so popular here in Japan." Lelouch said in distaste.

"Who doesn't wish they could go back to days before the occupation? Life was nice and happy without the Empire bleeding us dry. What about the shipment from Kyoto?" Kallen asked.

"Since we were already doing well they gave us a large number of Burais and plenty of weaponry." Lelouch said. "Not on the level of what Rai can create but it will be a huge boost to have more knightmares"

"Sounds promising but is there anything that I would like." Kallen asked as she hooked her arm through Lelouch's arm.

Kallen then turned her head to see five Britannian men beating up one Japanese man. With a look of anger on her face she turned and began to advance on them when a hand grabbed her shoulder. She looked behind her and saw Lelouch shaking his head.

"There's five of them, Kallen. As strong as you are, five to one is just too many."

"Are we just going to watch them do that, then?" Lelouch made eye contact with her, and his left eye began to glow a bright crimson. Her expression changes when she realized what he was going to do.

"You just let me handle them." The five men suddenly turned and began walking toward them.

"Hey you got a problem over there?" The leader asked.

"Na look at them, just Brits like us enjoying the show." Another of the men said.

"Actually, I do have a problem with that. You people are all the same, beating that man half to death just because there are more of you. You people make me sick." Lelouch stated.

"Well look at this, boys. This guy likes Elevens does he? Let's teach him the error of his ways."

Lelouch looked into their eyes and flared his Geass eye. "You are done beating up people and will not beat up people for fun." The Geass order took hold in their brains, and a faint red light emanated from their eyes.

He saw the faint red circles and one said, "Yeah. This is boring."

The group of assaulters then left with them attempting to find something else to do.

Lelouch noticed Kallen give him a slight nod before the beautiful redhead went over and knelt by the vendor.

"Hey," she called gently. "Are you alright?"

The Eleven vendor sat up shakily before his eyes went wide when he noticed the Ashford Academy crest on her uniform.

"A Britannian student," the vendor greeted with a forced smile that didn't reach his eyes. "What can I get for you?" he asked her. "How about a nice California roll miss?" Lelouch then walked over and the Eleven noticed him as well. "Is this your boyfriend? I can get him something too. I have ice cream if you like."

Lelouch simply reached out his hand to help the assaulted young man back to his feet. "Here," he offered. "No need to stress yourself, although we will take some sushi if it is no trouble for you."

"Thank you for your business?" The man said accepting the help up before turning around and taking out two packs of sushi out of his cart.

"Thank you. You should get your injuries checked out later." Lelouch said as he accepted the California rolls and handed the man forty pounds.

"Have a nice day." The man said in a genuinely happy tone.

"Very heroic of you Lelouch." Kallen said as they walked away eating their sushi

"Tell me later. Let's go back to the warehouse, we have to prepare for when the others arrive." Lelouch said as they walked back to his motorcycle.

* * *

**Rai's Lab**

_Zero and Lotus and Tempest and The Teacher and The Idiot_

As the original members of the Black Knights walked into the warehouse that Zero had told them to meet him at the were slightly shocked to see, two rows of 10 Bikoheika and behind them four rows of 10 Burais each stood near. On the other side of the row stood three units that were very unique that seemed to be in various stages of construction. There was the largest Knightmare that seemed to be missing its arms but seemed to have four legs and no land spinners. The second knightmare that they could see was the one that Zero used in Shinjuku, but the unit seemed to be missing its elbow and knee joints, as well as the plates on its forearms. The red knightmare was the most complete out of the three units with the left arm being the only thing being worked on by a man in a welding masked. The red unit, although not as large as the first unit, was taller, larger, and scarier than the Sutherlands they had faced before.

As they walked toward the red Knightmare, the man welding turned off the tools he was using to attach what seemed to be a knife sheath to the underside of the left arm. He quickly hopped down from the platform he was working on before taking off his welding mask and placing it on the platform.

"Hello there you must be here to meet me and see the knightmares. My name is Rai." Rai said as he walked toward them.

"Hello, nice to meet you." Ohgi said after no one else was able to stop starring at the advanced technology.

"Nice to meet, you too. Zero and Kallen are in the back waiting." Rai said before starting to walk toward the back of the factory.

"Whoa, I wonder who these two knightmares are going to be for." Tamaki said as he moved toward the red knightmare.

"Definitely not you. Kallen will be piloting that one and the other one is being driven by someone else. You all will be piloting Bikoheika. Now come on you guys need to be briefed for the next mission you guys will report back here afterward so you can get acquainted with your knightmares and practice in the simulators.

* * *

**Warehouse**

_Zero and Lotus and Tempest and The Teacher and The Idiot_

"What the hell is Zero thinking?" Tamaki grumbled as he and the rest of the Black Knights waited for the signal from their leader.

"After all this talk about taking down Britannia. He just got us running around helping the police." Tamaki complained as he gazed at the warehouse that they were supposed to raid.

The rest of rebels roll their eyes at that. "Did you forget Zero's explanation on why we're doing this?" Inoue asked with an annoyed tone.

"Remember, we are not just fighting to take Japan back but we are also fighting to keep it." Yoshida reminded the brash rebel sternly.

"And it's pretty good to have the will of the people behind us." Ohgi added solemnly.

"Yeah he's right, we are totally heroes." Ishida stated silently.

"And it helps us recruit others to fight our cause." Yoshida exclaimed, remembering the influx of recruits that want to be part of their organization.

Tamaki groaned at that, all of his arguments were shot down.

Inside of the warehouse, countless workers were moving crates of drugs from their containers and preparing them for transport. "Is the shipment for the Nagoya ready?" The Leader of the smugglers asked.

"It's nice and safe in the settlement, huh." The person beside him commented as he said those words, a hail of bullets suddenly tore through the front door, startling everyone in the warehouse causing them all to panic.

Tamaki then kicked the large metal door open as they pointed their rifles at everyone present. "The Black Knights have arrived." With that said, they began to open fire. Some of the smugglers were able to return fire but that changed when Kallen's red Bikoheika entered the warehouse. The Bikoheika let loose a hail of bullets with its rifle.

"Knightmares,"

"Screw this," The sight of two heavily arm Knightmares cause even more panic as they hightail it out of there to avoid being killed by the two monstrous machines.

The rain of bullets had hit a couple of crates causing crimson liquid to flow from them. "These Knightmares really are amazing, each one are an army onto itself." Kallen commented as she rode through the warehouse. She then changes her direction and broke through a closing, metallic door, what she saw their made her sick to the stomach.

"I did it! I'm studying abroad!"

"I can't believe it! I'm getting married next week!"

"I got promoted! I don't believe it!"

"Japan...oh, the country is so beautiful this time of year!"

Refrain was a horrible thing in many ways. A psychoactive narcotic that induced flashes of happier times from memory, building up an emotional addiction rather than a physiological one. And worse still, the body grew immune to it quickly, slowly forcing the user to up the dosage to achieve the same effects, locking its victims into a descending spiral that would end without exception in death from overdose, or suicide.

"Refrain," Kallen muttered with disgust. She stood there, baring witness as her countrymen acting like fools, reliving their most cherish moments of the lives. Her eyes soften a bit when she saw the vendor that she and Lelouch saved from those thugs earlier on. "When you add them all up, it eventually breaks you." Kallen said, quoting the very words that Milly said to her. She growled in anger. "That's right, that's the reason why I'm here." Kallen stated this is why she was fighting; she was fighting so that her countrymen could be freed from their oppressors.

"Careful, it's dangerous to run like that." A familiar voice caused her to flinch as her screen suddenly focuses on a familiar woman, her mother.

"Mother," Kallen mumbled as she caught her mother with the hands of her Gloucester when she was about to fall down. She then brought her up as her screen focus solely on her.

"Really Naoto, please I need you to look after your little sister." Kallen's mother said to practically no one, her mind a hallucinating her eldest.

Kallen fought back the tears as her heart was almost torn at the sight of her mother. "My God, how weak of a woman are you mother? First you give in to Britannia, then to a man, and now this. My brother is gone forever, let him go." Kallen shouted as a hail of bullets suddenly brought her back to reality as she jerked on her cockpit as her rifle was blown off.

She shifted her gazed and noticed a Knightmare, a Knight police. "The Knight police?" Kallen shouted as she moved her frame to avoid it getting damaged by the Knight police's Machine Pistol.

"Isn't that a police unit?" Yoshida inquired, surprised that the police was actually in cahoots with the smugglers.

"They're in with this deal, Tamaki!" Ohgi shouted as he glared at the man who was to suppose to scout the area.

"Don't look at me, when I check it out, there wasn't any cops involved." Tamaki defended himself

"Everyone don't forget the mission at hand. I want all the drugs destroyed and any valuable equipment or money taken." Lelouch said in an authoritative voice. "Kallen will be able to handle the knightmare no problem."

The only thing Kallen could do at the moment was dodge, her frame could have easily taken her down her opponent with no problem at all but she feared, even though unconsciously. She cannot return fire for that might cause her mother to be caught in the cross fire.

The pilot of the Knight police wasn't that good of an aim but because her movements were limited, some of the bullets were hitting her frame and at that moment, she thanked the fortified armor of her Bikoheika.

Kallen frowned as her gazed was fixed to the prone form of her mother. "You're in the way." Kallen yelled as she pushed several controls from her controls. She was about to throw her away but something in her, something that in her heart prevented her from doing so. "Damn it! I don't need you, I don't want you." Kallen shouted as she tried so hard to throw her away but something was preventing her. It was so easy but something, something was preventing her from doing so.

She was so distracted that she wasn't able to avoid the shot that was aimed to her Land spinner propulsion system, causing her Bikoheika to fumble and skid to the ground. Kallen grunted as her gazed fell on her mother once again.

"Kallen, Naoto," Her mother whispered tenderly.

Kallen's eyes softened a bit until she was forced back to reality as she shielded her mother from the hail of bullets that came from the Machine Pistol. Kallen shouted in her sheer helplessness, it was all that woman's fault.

"Go on, run." Kallen exclaimed loudly as she once again gazed at her mother. "Get moving you idiot." Kallen shouted in frustration as her mother stood up and gazed at the large Bikoheika that was protecting her.

"I'm here for you." That caused Kallen to flinch. "I'm here for you, Kallen. I'm here as I always have been." Her mother with a loving tone and with a gentle and loving smile.

Kallen suddenly relieved those moments where her mother, regardless if she was being treated like dirt by her, smile to her lovingly. Those memories caused her heart to clench in pain. "Then that's... That's why you stayed in his house? You stayed there for me? You fool! ...Or maybe I'm the fool." Kallen mumbled in sorrow.

The Knightmare behind her slowly walks towards her fallen Bikoheika, an Anti-Knightmare Frame Combat Knife on its hands.

"No you don't you bastard." Lelouch said as shot what appeared to be a flare gun at the knightmare. The round shot out and stuck to the cockpit of the knight police's knightmare. It beeped three times before releasing a large charge of electricity causing the lights of the knightmare to shut off. Kallen quickly took advantage of this, putting her mother down and firing her buzz saw shield at the temporarily downed Knightmare's cockpit causing the knightmare to explode.

Kallen quickly gets out of her knightmare and runs toward her mother who is now standing, being supported by Lelouch. Kallen embraces her mother and begins to cry and apologize.

* * *

**Rai's Lab**

_Zero and Lotus_

"You okay there?" Lelouch asked, still dressed as Zero, as he approached the disheartened Kallen. The Black Knights have gathered everyone in the warehouse affected by the Refrain drugged and taken them back to Rai's warehouse so that they could be treated. The victims were now resting on the Black Knights personal Infirmary.

"I'm fine, don't worry." Kallen answered as she sat near her mother's bed. "Thanks for the save."

"She is a strong woman." Lelouch complimented as he put an arm around Kallen's shoulder.

"I don't understand her. She suffered all that pain, for me." Kallen muttered with a pain filled voice as tears slowly fell down her eyes.

"A mother will do anything to be with their children; they can suffer through hell, walk through flames, and slay armies just to protect their children. Your mother is the epitome of that." Lelouch exclaimed softly as he caress her hair gently. "...You shouldn't take her for granted, Kallen." Lelouch advised softly, as Kallen stared at him. "You never know what you have...until one day...it's gone..." At this, Lelouch had to fight back the memories that threaten to overwhelm him.

"I was horrible to her all these years… I thought she was stupid and weak for staying… and now that I finally find out why she stayed…" Kallen broke down again, quiet sobs shaking her body.

Lelouch shook his head as he enveloped her in an embrace. "She'll be okay, Kallen, she'll recover. She is strong Kallen, she is just like you." Lelouch whispered gently. "You two will live happily again, I'll make sure of it and so will you." Lelouch stated with an assuring tone. "I do have an idea that could help your mother get over her addiction though."

"What is it?" Kallen asked as she calmed down slightly.

"With your permission, I can use my Geass to make your mother not want to take refrain again." Lelouch said as he held Kallen close to his chest and stroked her hair.

"Will it work?" Kallen asked with hope in her voice.

"It will not instantly work on making her completely normal but with this we will not have to turn her in in order for her to receive rehab treatment. She should be fine once the refrain exits her system which should only take a week or two." Lelouch said as he continued to stroke Kallen's hair.

"Could you please try?" Kallen asked with a slightly desperate tone in her voice.

"Alright now. Mrs. Kozuki," Lelouch said, causing Kallen's mother to turn toward him as the glass in front of his left eye to slide out of the way "I command you to never take refrain again."

"Yes my lord." Kallen's mother said before returning to her despondent state.

"The rest is up to her. Now come on Q-1 the others are waiting." Lelouch said getting up and offering his hand out to Kallen.

"Of course Zero." Kallen said a she wiped the tears from her eyes and took Lelouch's hand and followed him out of the room.

* * *

Sorry about the late update I had work this summer and a 5 weeks of hell program to earn college credit before college starts. I meant to release this earlier but it was not finished before my program started so here you go. Next is Narita.

Lelouch Vi Britannia commands you, Review!


	12. Narita

Early Start: Narita

"_Thoughts_"

"Speech"

Action

**Time**

CUSTOMARY DISCLAIMER: I do not, nor have in any way, ever owned anything to do with the original anime or story which my fan fictions are based off of. These stories are written for the sole purpose of entertainment, and not meant to achieve any profit through selling it. Honestly.

I assure you that I do not promote violence against Flamers (I do, however, find it hilarious).

* * *

**Last Time**

"I was horrible to her all these years… I thought she was stupid and weak for staying… and now that I finally find out why she stayed…" Kallen broke down again, quiet sobs shaking her body.

Lelouch shook his head as he enveloped her in an embrace. "She'll be okay, Kallen, she'll recover. She is strong Kallen, she is just like you." Lelouch whispered gently. "You two will live happily again, I'll make sure of it and so will you." Lelouch stated with an assuring tone. "I do have an idea that could help your mother get over her addiction though."

"What is it?" Kallen asked as she calmed down slightly.

"With your permission, I can use my Geass to make your mother not want to take refrain again." Lelouch said as he held Kallen close to his chest and stroked her hair.

"Will it work?" Kallen asked with hope in her voice.

"It will not instantly work on making her completely normal but with this we will not have to turn her in in order for her to receive rehab treatment. She should be fine once the refrain exits her system which should only take a week or two." Lelouch said as he continued to stroke Kallen's hair.

"Could you please try?" Kallen asked with a slightly desperate tone in her voice.

"Alright now. Mrs. Kozuki," Lelouch said, causing Kallen's mother to turn toward him as the glass in front of his left eye to slide out of the way "I command you to never take refrain again."

"Yes my lord." Kallen's mother said before returning to her despondent state.

"The rest is up to her. Now come on Q-1 the others are waiting." Lelouch said getting up and offering his hand out to Kallen.

"Of course Zero." Kallen said a she wiped the tears from her eyes and took Lelouch's hand and followed him out of the room.

* * *

**Now**

_Zero and Lotus and Tempest and The Teacher and The Idiot_

The original members of the Black Knights were all seated in the meeting room in the warehouse waiting for Zero and Kallen to show up. Most of them had seen how upset Kallen was at seeing her mother there in the Refrain warehouse. Ohgi decided to break the silence.

"So Rai, how did you meet Zero and how long have you known him?" Ohgi asked respectfully.

"It has been about five years since I started working for Zero after he saved my life seven years ago." Rai said casually.

"But you look like you are only eighteen." Inoue said.

"Sixteen." Rai corrected.

"You started designing Knightmares when you were eleven." Ohgi asked shocked.

"Well when I was ten, I spent that year learning about all the current knightmare technology." Rai said calmly.

"Man, where did Zero find you?" Some of the black knights asked in shock.

"Passed out on a mountain." Rai said in a calm tone.

"I see you have met Rai." Lelouch said as he walked in the room with Kallen, their hands quickly unlocking which was only noticed by Ohgi who narrowed his eyes. "And I am sure you noticed his inability to recognize sarcasm."

"Screw off L-Zero." Rai said while crossing his arms and huffing.

"Now that you have seen our permanent base of scientific operations I want all of you to put some time in the simulators so that you will ready for the operation this weekend. Two days from now we will be getting some new recruits, so I want all of you to have the recruits practice in the simulators. Kallen, I want you to look at the recruits results to see if any of them are ace level pilots or just very good. Pick out the top ones and they will be piloting Bikoheika instead of Burai." Lelouch explained. "Once that is finished, focus on getting the knightmares and guns packed and ready to move. We'll be leaving for the Narita mountains as soon we can after everyone is trained." Lelouch ordered.

"Narita Mountains?" Ohgi asked looking at Zero. "What's waiting for us there?"

"Nothing is waiting for us. We'll be waiting for Cornelia." Zero turned his back on the Black Knights and began to walk away.

"You heard the man, now let's get to work." Kallen said standing up and moving towards the simulators.

"Not yet Kallen. You need to get acquainted with your new knightmare." Rai said as he walked towards Kallen before handing her a manual. "Once you finish reading this then you can go practice with the Guren in the simulator."

* * *

**Hi-TV**

_The Scribe_

"I am aware that you got demoted because of Zero." Viletta said to Diethard who was looking over some files on his computer.

"And what of it." Diethard said with a raised eyebrow.

I want to offer you the chance to get you position back." Viletta said. "What I need you to do is look up some information on a student at Ashford Academy."

"Why is that?" Diethard asked.

"I believe that he may be involved in Zero and could lead to him. I am going to busy for the next couple of days in Narita." Viletta explained.

"Alright, I will see what I can find on him." Diethard said while thinking "_The military is going to attack the Japanese Liberation Front. Zero will want to know about both this and the fact that Viletta is going after this person._"

* * *

**Government Building**

_Battle Queen_

Inside the Britannian flagship Cornelia was sitting at a table, looking over the preparations for Narita. She had her hand placed thoughtfully on her jaw as she looked at the map of the mountain, placing markers that represented units across the field. She had called in extra reinforcements for this mission and she had the Lancelot ready to go into combat with her. Still, she needed to ensure the safety of the command ship, Euphemia was going to be onboard and she didn't want to take any chances with her younger sister. "Guilford."

As summoned the Knight showed up on a screen in front of her. "Princess?"

"Change of plans, inform the pilot of the Lancelot that he is to remain guarding the command ship until ordered otherwise. I want him to protect Euphemia until we need him." Cornelia said bringing her attention back to the map.

"Understood." Guilford responded and cleared the channel.

This way if Zero comes and tries to ambush the command vessel the Lancelot will buy them enough time to regroup. If Zero moves into the battlefield she can bring the Lancelot from behind. Of course this entire plan hinged on the thought that Zero would show up. Britannia didn't want him to, with him out of the picture this victory was already won. Which was why no public statement had been made, if there was one, Zero was sure to come. Despite this, Cornelia had a sneaking suspicion that the information would find him somehow and prayed that he would show. Then she would have her revenge

* * *

**Narita Mountains**

_Zero and Lotus and White Witch and The Teacher and The Idiot_

"Right, the next scheduled report will be in two hours." The patrolman said before hanging up the phone and returning back the game he and his partner were playing to dull the monotony of their dreary but extremely necessary duties of keeping a secure parameter.

"Of course there is nothing to report." The other patrolman stated boredly, "This area is controlled by the Japan Liberation Front. No one can just stroll in…" the sound of the door opening interrupted him in the middle of his sentence. He and his partner jumped to their feet, knocking their chairs over in the process and aimed their guns when they realized who had infiltrated their post. "Zero!"

"Relax, I only came to talk." Zero said taking off his mask. The two men's eyes widened, thinking they were going to get a glance of Zero's true face but all they saw in that split second was a mop of raven hair and a glowing red eye. "I want you to ignore any unusual activity during your watch."

"Sure, no problem." The one watchman said as they both picked up their chairs and resumed their game.

"Come on! It's your turn." The other urged impatiently.

"What's the rush? We're just on regular duty you know."

With all the patrolmen on the parameter of the Japanese Liberation Front's base now oblivious to the goings on Lelouch took out a small mirror from his pocket.

Somewhere off in the distance Ohgi saw the flashing light Zero instructed him and the other Black Knights to look out for and got on his radio. "I've confirmed the signal from Zero. We are now moving to way point two."

As they all headed up the mountain in an orderly fashion Tamaki began asking questions. "Why doesn't Zero just use the radio in his Bikoheika?"

"And what do you suppose he meant when he said hiking?" Inoue joined in.

"Um…military training right?" Kenta guessed.

"Only with Zero in another location?" Tamaki asked in a tone that suggested Kenta was being completely stupid.

"Then maybe we'll dig a hot spring." Yoshitaka joked.

Kenta laughed, "Is that why we brought those excavators? Hell, I'm all for it then!"

"Kallen you heard anything about this?" Tamaki asked.

Kallen, who was currently driving the Guren up the mountain path briefly looked up from the manual she'd been studying when she heard her name over her radio, "No, I haven't."

"You Ohgi?" Tamaki asked.

"Nope, not a thing." Ohgi answered before quickly slipping back into his own thoughts. 'Zero isn't using the radios to avoid being traced. Is he serious about this?'

Back at the outpost Lelouch was looking over a map of the Narita Mountains. He was using this time to think up some last minute strategies when he noticed C.C. out the window of the outpost. She was just standing there overlooking the picturesque scenery without anything to protect her from the frosty climate of the mountain peak. He grudgingly left the warmth of the burring hearth inside tiny log cabin to see what she was doing. "C.C., what are you doing out here?" Lelouch asked.

She didn't turn to look at him but began speaking in the same bored tone she always used, "I've been wondering about something Lelouch." C.C. said.

"Oh yeah, what have you been wondering?" Lelouch asked.

"When you were in hiding you stayed _Lelouch_ did you not? Why is that? You could have been someone else." C.C. asked.

Lelouch scowled at the back of her head it was a subject that was outside his comfort zone, "I don't have time to discuss philosophy with you."

As usual the sarcastic quip didn't faze her. "You changed your sir name to Lamperouge but you kept _Lelouch, _your given name at birth…how sentimental. You can't let go of the past." C.C. said.

He didn't like her assumptions; no matter how correct they may or may not have been, "Well, C.C. swings to the other extreme, doesn't it? It's not a human name." Lelouch said sharply.

With that she turned to face him with a sharp glare in her honey colored eyes as the wind began to pick up and blow around flurries from the patchy snow covered mountain top. "Lelouch, do you know why snow is white? Snow is white because it's forgotten what color it is supposed to be." C.C. said before being silence.

* * *

**Mountain Summit**

_Zero and Lotus and The Teacher and The Idiot_

"Are you sure about this?" Ohgi asked Zero as he and the others watched the excavators do their work. Zero had ordered them to be spread far out from one another, even placing one at the very top of the peak and others further down the mountain from their actual location. Some of the newer recruits were in the process of scattering seismic chargers all along the mountain face, placing them in strategically appointed areas.

"Our opponents are some of the best Britannia has to offer forces led by Cornelia.

Ohgi took a deep breath, "Then why don't we just cooperate with the Japan Liberation Front?"

"What was that? Ohgi, don't you believe in me anymore?" Zero asked sounding more disappointed than aggravated.

"What do you mean? I was the one who asked you to be our leader!" Ohgi defended. "Don't you remember?"

"Then there is only one answer to give." Zero replied in reference to the original question.

"Right." Ohgi responded with reluctance.

* * *

**The G-1**

_Warrior Queen_

"Right, commence operation!" Cornelia announced to all as she triggered the launch mechanism of her Gloucester. She sped away into the woodland landscape with her men in what to the untrained eye would seem like reckless abandon. "You the Japan Liberation Front, you who time has left behind, you who have forgotten basic human decency, you and your dream of a bygone golden age shall fall and rot to nothingness!"

* * *

**Japanese Liberation Front Underground Base**

_Miracle Man_

Alarms and red lights had started going off as the members of the former Japanese military started scrambling to get to their battle stations. "We're under enemy attack!" General Katase asked on the cusp of alarm.

"Yes sir! The Britannian forces have us completely encircled! We have counted over a hundred units!" one of his officers confirmed. "We are completely surrounded and our underground forces were captured all at once!"

"General Katase, we have received orders from the Britannian forces demanding our surrender!" another said.

"Imbecile!" Katase growled. "If we fall here then we've lost and the whole resistance movement falls with us!"

"Then General, do we engage the enemy in battle or do we use the entrenchment plan?"

"What about Todoh? Where is he?" Katase asked.

"He and the Four Holy Swords are preparing their Knightmares. The first officer informed. It was just what Katase wanted, no needed to hear. With the delivery of the generous gifts Kyoto had bestrode upon them they had the trump cards they needed to, at the very least, give the Britannians hell.

"Send out the Burais while the Four Holy Swords prepare for deployment! We'll break the encirclement and evacuate!" Katase ordered. "Show them the Japanese pride and spirit. This is our moment of truth!"

Below the command center in a huge cavern their organization had converted into a Knightmare hanger Todoh and his team began the task of preparing their Knightmares for battle.

"Todoh sir, you don't think this is a little extreme?" Asahina asked.

"The Britannians have already begun to attack." Todoh explained. "There is no time to lose."

* * *

**Mountain Summit**

From their position on the mountain the Black Knights could see that the Britannian units were fast approaching. This couldn't have been what Zero brought them here for could it?

"It's begun." Zero announced flatly. They all looked at their leader as if her were completely mad.

"Huh? What the hell? You have gotta be kidding, Zero! Those troops coming in have this whole area totally surrounded! There is no way out!" Tamaki yelled irately.

"We've already been cut off. Our only chance of surviving now is to fight."

"What? We can't fight the Britannians!" Inoue said in distress.

"Let me get this straight! We're surrounded and you want us to fight them head on?"

"Cornelia's forces are far stronger than we've ever encountered!"

"Correct. It would be a miracle if we win this."

"Zero! What are you saying?" Ohgi demanded.

"Even Messiahs need to perform miracles if they're to be acknowledged. There for, we have to produce our own miracle don't we?"

Tamaki was livid, "Now look, pulling this off isn't going to be cheap! The price could be our lives! I knew it was insane to make you our leader! It should be me!" he slung his rifle off of his shoulder and pointed it at Zero but he wasn't quick enough; Zero already had a hand gun pointed at him.

There was a tense pause as everyone was at that point expecting some sort of a standoff but instead Zero twirled the gun around in his hand and offering it to anyone foolhardy enough to take it from him and pull the trigger. "Our path of retreat has already been cut off. If you think you can win without me then shoot me! Since you joined the Black Knights you have only two choices. You may either live with me, or you may parish with me!" The others could only stand there in shock. "What's wrong? Challenge me and take me down." Zero insisted once more.

Tamaki finally backed down, "Alright fine. Do what you want."

"We acknowledge you as our leader Zero." Kenta said, monotone.

"Thank you, that is appreciated." Zero responded, sounding almost insincere. That little challenge had thoroughly shut the hot-headed man and any other dissenters up.

* * *

**The G-1**

_Warrior Queen and The Princess_

"The enemy's main base is located in the mountains somewhere in this area." One of the tacticians said pointing to the area surrounded by their units on the screen. "However we have been unable to pinpoint their exact location. So, until we obtain a list of their collaborators we can't simply burn down everything with aerial bombing. The enemy is engaging our encirclement, and will try to break through at some point. From there we'll be able to ascertain where their base is."

"What are the groups everyone is split up into?" She asked.

"Our forces are split up into three fronts. Darlton is leading the group to the right, General Alex is leading the team in the middle, and Cornelia is with Guilford on the left. The reserve forces are being led by the purebloods." Euphie interrupted him with a gasp as the screen they were looking at began to short out for a diminutive moment. "That would be enemy ECM. They're trying to scramble our radar equipment."

Euphemia then saw a unit cloistered off on its own, holding a good distance from the rest.

"What is that unit there? Holding to the rear?"

"That is the reserve units. It has an Eleven pilot." The man who had answered her question said the final two words with distaste.

Euphie's brow furled; there was only one _Eleven pilot_ that she knew of. "What? You mean that's the Lancelot?"

"As a general rule numbers aren't allowed to operate Knightmares. However, the Second Prince happens to be the patron of those units so we have no say over their personnel selection."

Her heart swelled with pride for her brother standing up for what was right, but it didn't stop her anger at the obvious discrimination from surfacing, "That doesn't explain why they are positioned so far away from everything! My brother is the pilot for one of those units why aren't they closer?"

"The Prince Schneizel wants the units to get as many chances at real combat as possible but the Viceroy doesn't wish for them to interfere in the operation."

Out on the battle field Darlton lead his team through the rocky terrain of the mountains "The main enemy forces should be coming out anytime now. We're switching to ECCM mode. Link up on channel Alpha-four." The scar-faced General instructed before asking, "The enemy…what are we calling them again?"

"Burais Sir." One of the other pilots answered.

"Oh right, just watch out for those Glasgow rip-offs."

"Yes my lord."

On the opposite side of the mountain Cornelia and company raced through the forest and bore witness to a cop of trees retracting from their places on the ground, revealing a only handful of enemy Burais waiting for them in a clearing. "How clever, they turned this whole mountain into a fortress." Cornelia said, more amused at the enemy's ingenuity than anything.

Guilford however, was growing concerned with the apparent unpredictability of their battle ground, "Your Highness please fall back!"

"Guilford, don't treat me as though I'm another one of your women." She scolded flatly as she continued to advance on the enemy Knightmares ahead.

"Princess Cornelia!" he tried to protest as she sped past him.

The men in the Burais began firing wildly at her Gloucester with a cry of "Take out their leader!"

"Insolent worms!" She cackled ferociously taking out all three of them with one swing of her lace, impaling one in the process causing it to explode above her in a plume of fire and black smoke.

"Right…I guess I'll cover you from the rear then." Guilford said, relenting at the fearsome display.

"Well, Cornelia is here! Is there no one who will challenge me?" She called out to the enemy, daring whoever else that may be within range to make their move.

Unlike his princess Darlton was having no trouble finding opponents to vanquish. "The Enemy seems to be concentrated over here. This may be the target. Split up now!"

"General Darlton, Based on the analysis of the enemy's movements I have determined that the entrance to the Japanese Liberation Front main base is that lodge located up on the mountain."

A grin of satisfaction spread across Darlton's face at the news, "I believe the proper word for this situation is bingo."

"Well, to be more precise it'd be…" his subordinate began to correct but Darlton interrupted him.

"Oh just call it in already Mr. Literal." The lesser officer did has he was told and fired the signal flare which could be seen for miles as it lit up the sky.

"So that's where the main enemy base is located?" Guilford asked when he saw the flare burst in the air.

"Yes, we'll be securing our position here then." Cornelia answered.

"Are you sure about that?"

"I don't need to steal achievements form my subordinates. Send a reserve force to back up Darlton, looks like he'll be getting another medal."

* * *

**Japanese Liberation Front Underground Base**

_Miracle Man_

"Sir, our attack wave has had no effect!"

"We've lost contact with Nakamura's unit!"

"No response from sector three."

"Major Tamata's been killed!"

"Kuroda and Kurata are gone too!"

"What about Nagai?"

Things were going from bad to worse for Katase. Every moment it took to prepare the custom Burais for deployment seemed to count. Reports of their failing defenses just kept rolling in and the death toll was mounting. The Britannians sheer speed and dominance was insurmountable; they wouldn't be able to go on like this for much longer. "We just hold it together for a few seconds more!"

"Sir, Todoh and the Four Holy Swords are now ready move out!"

Katase closed his eyes and breathed a sigh of relief, "Finally the divine wind will blow, and we'll have another miracle of Itsukushima!"

From their various deployment positions in the Japanese Liberation Front's intricate network of underground tunnels the Four Holy Swords organized themselves to move out.

"All units, are you ready?" Todoh asked.

"Yes sir." Came the unanimous reply from all ends.

"Now listen carefully," Todoh continued. "The enemy has our base completely encircled so the most effective approach will be to fan out and take command of our remaining ground forces that way we can fight them and break their hold on a number of fronts."

"Yes sir!"

"Alright, deploy the custom Burais! Let's take revenge for seven years ago!"

"Deploying!" they said in unison racing to their individual destinations.

* * *

**Mountain summit**

_Zero and Lotus and Warrior Queen and The Princess_

The time had finally come, on Zero's orders most of the excavators had been removed from the ground and the remaining seismic chargers where placed inside the neatly dug vents. Once Zero was situated in a Bikoheika the command was made," All preparations have now been completed. All Black Knights, prepare to move out!"

"Dammit we have no choice!" one of them swore in desperation.

"I don't want to die!" another cried out. "We'll make a miracle happen!"

"We Black Knights are going to launch a surprise attack on the Britannians from the mountain summit! Per my instructions, you will charge down on point three! Our breakthrough route will be opened by the Guren. Your objective is to Capture Cornelia! If you survive you will have earned the right to call yourselves true warriors! Britannia will be forced to recognize us as a military power! Kallen, use penetrating electrode one."

"Got it!" Kallen replied, obeying her leader from her position at the top of the summit. She approached the specified excavator which marked the Guren's firing point and with the retracting function activated she was able use the Knightmare to easily remove the piece of equipment from its place in the dirt, she then carefully positioned the Guren's radiant wave surger on top of the opening. "Output confirmed, radiant wave surger maintaining mid-level radiation status." She reported as the weapon came alive with power. All of the excavators had dug down to the water table beneath the mountain. "Activating now!" everyone stepped back as the first powerful blast ripped down through the ground. The ground begin to tremor beneath them as the first of them began going off, each explosion building on the last causing the soil and bedrock to loosen. "Now!"

"Right!" Kallen answered, immediately pressing back down on the firing mechanism little harder than she probably needed to. The full power discharge exploded downward which caused the subterranean water-tables to flash boil and expand violently, imitating a small nuclear reaction. Once the final blow was dealt the Knightmare stood over a small smoldering crater. There was an ominous clam leading some to think it may not have worked, but then the ground beneath them began to violently quake. "It worked!" Kallen cried excitedly as a torrent of dirt, rocks, water, and uprooted foliage began to wildly gush down from the mountain peak indiscriminately decimating those in its path. The thunderous sound of tree trunks being snapped like twigs under the weight of something huge rang through the air, offering little warning to those positioned in the town resting at the mountain's base as the landslide buried anybody and anything.

In Darlton's location, he and his team were desperately trying not to get swept away as they got hammered by the sudden onslaught of nature. "Climb! Get to higher ground!" the seasoned General urged his remaining men. They used their slash-harkens to secure their Knightmares to the rock above effectively letting the weapon pull them up and out of the muddy avalanche, not quite to safety but close as they were going to get to it.

The Japanese Liberation Front's high command wasn't fairing much better, their entire base under the mountain was falling to pieces. "Will this place hold together?" Katase asked while he, like many others, was gripping the main radar consul tightly so as to lose his footing.

"The Central Area should make it through Sir!" One of his men reassured. "Let's just hope the tunnel system holds up!"

Cornelia however, was lucky enough to be just outside the mudslide's path. "All units, status report!" she demanded over her radio, the only answer she revived was that they were still trying to confirm.

"Your highness, pull back! You're in danger here!" Guilford begged as the land continued to shake. But she steadfastly refused.

"I don't care!" she ardently declared, "Forget about me and find out about Darlton! And where's Alex?"

In the G-1 Euphemia watched the radar in shock. She was thankful however that Cornelia had the foresight to call for an evacuation before the operation, for the town nestled at the foot of the mountain had been, for the most part, destroyed. Even if it was only to appease her.

She could hear someone frantically announcing that both General Darlton's and General Alex's units were being wiped out in the background but he could see this for himself, over two thirds of their ground units started turning up as lost on the screen.

In the end the landslide had served its purpose; it effectively opened up a brake though route for the Black Knights to move in simultaneously causing damage to the Britannian forces so severe that their command structure wouldn't be able to sustain it. But its main function was to isolate Cornelia, making it easy for the Black Knight to capture her. While he had no true hatred for Cornelia, she need to be out of the way for his plan to succeed. This opportunity to take her prisoner was just too good to pass up.

It wasn't long before damage reports from all units scattered around the mountain begin to flood their radio. Marcel unit reported that the second division had been completely wiped out and that they could not raise General Alex, Darlton reported that only about twenty percent of their forces were left.

"We have an emergency call from Carius unit!" One of the advisers said.

"What is the message?" Euphemia asked.

"The Black Knights are attacking from the summit."

"Send the message to Cornelia quickly." Euphemia ordered.

* * *

**Special Core**

_The Tinkerer and White Knight_

"Oh my, at this rate they will be swept away to the bottom." Lloyd said while looking at the forces map.

"These heat readings are abnormal, do you believe a hydro volcanic eruption was artificially induced?" Cecile asked.

"Impossible unless of course someone has used Rakshata's radiant wave surger." Lloyd said

"Has something happened?" Suzaku asked.

"Yes, but it has nothing to do with us, so just relax and continue waiting." Lloyd said.

* * *

_Warrior Queen and Miracle Man_

A foreboding clam had fallen over the landscape as Cornelia and her unit searched for a route that hadn't been cut off. They had begun to hunt for an open path in the hope of possibly lending assistance to units in other areas still under attack, but it was so far proving to be fruitless. Or at least it was fruitless until they came upon a group of five enemy units just waiting to launch a surprise attack.

Upon sight of the enemy the Japanese Liberation Front units wasted no time engaging their Britannian adversaries. Fortunately Cornelia was able to ready herself in time to put her lance through the first Burai that came upon her. After dislodging her weapon from the bloody wreck she looked up to see another Burai weaving through her ranks, defeating a Gloucester by thrusting its sword through its factsphere and downing a pair of Sutherlands who opened fire on it by knocking their machine-guns away with its slash-harkens before closing the distance and slicing through both legs of one at the knee, forcing its pilot to eject as the Sutherland collapsed, in the same attack the Burai had also sliced the waist of the other Knightmare, causing it to explode. "That one must be their captain." Cornelia reasoned. The Burai was alien looking and it moved much more swiftly than the others which all seemed to move faster than the general Burais.

"Guilford take care of their leader, I know something that will turn this around. After you drive them back, meet me at point nine." Cornelia ordered.

"Of course, I understand." Guilford said calmly.

A second Gloucester came at it and was immediately met with a series of slashes and thrusts in rapid succession at the edge of the Burai's chain-sword, quickly forcing the Britannian Knightmare onto the defensive. The Burai gave it a strong horizontal slash to the chest, compelling the pilot in the Gloucester to turn its lance vertically to block. As the chain-sword met the lance in a mass of sparks, the enemy unit fired its left slash hearken, striking the Gloucester in its right shoulder and disabling the arm the wielded the lance. It then thrust its sword, which was still pressed against the lance, forward and through the Gloucester's cockpit, killing its pilot, before neatly withdrawing it with a swift jerk of the arm.

Cornelia saw Guilford readied his lance and charged at it while there was still an opening, but the Japanese Liberation Front leader saw him coming and their weapons clashed in another sea of sparks. "I must say that your skills are impressive, very remarkable for an Eleven." Guilford called out. "You must be the infamous Kyoshiro Todoh."

Guilford swung his lance to the right, forcing Todoh away and keeping him from making a counter attack. He then shot forward at him, but rather than another full charge, he initiated a rapid series of jabs with his lance, alternating between targeting his opponents arms, legs, head, and chest, all while using his lance's superior length to keep Todoh at enough of a distance so that he couldn't reach him with his sword.

Guilford's intensity was enough that Todoh could do little more than dodge and deflect the attacks, and Guilford kept on him forcing him back. "He who hesitates is lost!" he bellowed as he made another jab for Todoh head piece, he responded by ducking down into a crouching stance and thrust at his Gloucester's head with his sword. Guilford jerked back, but he still managed to inflict a moderate gash on his Knightmare's forehead and the cover plate of his factsphere. Guilford backpedaled, but he kept after him, beginning his own fleeting attack of thrusts and slashes with his chain-sword. He drove the sword across his Gloucester's right bicep and she countered by punching the Burai's left wrist. As a follow up, he raised his lance up over his head as though to swing it down like a hammer, but instead slammed the hilt forward smashing the bottom right of the Burai's face, just below the factsphere, noticeably caving it in.

Todoh stumbled back but quickly recovered and launched forward with a large horizontal slash the instant he regained his footing. Cornelia jumped backwards into the air and fired her slash-harkens so that they anchored into the ground several meters to either side of her enemy and retracted them rapidly, pulling the still airborne Gloucester straight towards him with his lance outstretched. He kicked his land spinners into reverse and fired his own slash-harkens at the knight in quick succession, in order to avoid them Guilford alternated the reaction speed of his own harkens to pull him from side to side. He then hurled the lance like a javelin and ripping through his Burai's left knee, causing his Knightmare to stumble and fall over onto its backside. Once Guilford landed he raced over to where he had fallen, grabbing his lance as she shot past and used it to try to smack the revolving blade sword out of his hand. Unfortunately for Guilford, Todoh in a quick move, threw his chain sword into Guilford's arm, both destroying it and causing Guilford to be sent backwards.

Although Guilford was put off balance he was about to charge at the almost completely defenseless unit before he was contacted by the G-1, "Guilford…"

"What is it Euphemia?" He said dueling an enemy pilot with his lance who was protecting the downed unit.

"An unidentified unit is approaching you from the rear. It appears to have broken the encirclement." Euphemia said slightly panicking over the radio.

"What?" Guilford said as a monstrous dark shadow jumped out of the forest.

* * *

Narita baby, here you go. New chapter. What changes are afoot? What is this dark shadow? Will the black knights succeed? Will Todoh survive? Find out on the next episode of Dragon Ba.. I mean Early Start.

Sorry said Todoh had the guren on accident

Lelouch Vi Britannia commands you, Review!


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